One man gravely wounded in exchange of gunfire with police in Ferguson

Police say the detectives then exited the vehicle and that Harris turned and began firing rounds at the detectives, who fired back at him.

The shooting came after rival groups began shooting at each other on the west side of West Florissant Avenue, the center of the Ferguson protests, Chief Jon Belmar of the St. Louis County Police Department said… He has not been identified. The shots sent protesters and reporters running for cover. “That’s unfortunate. Because even with the folks who were in the street last night, there were a lot of emotions, I get it. But this is something different”.

Shortly before gunfire erupted during protests marking the anniversary of officer-involved fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, demonstrators were caught on video chanting that they were “ready for war”.

The pair were rushed to hospital and are being treated for non-life threatening injures. The man opened fire at the vehicle, according to Belmar.

However, he warned, not many people would believe the police officers’ account of Sunday night’s events as “there’s still a tremendous level of distrust between law enforcement and the community”.

Before the spate of violence late Sunday night, the day had been peaceful in Ferguson, with hundreds of protesters gathering at the site where Brown was killed, and marching through the town. “They’ve worked too hard for this to happen”.

Around two hours before, Tyrone Harris, 18, was shot after he became engaged in a gunfight with St Louis County police, the department chief Jon Belmar told a press conference. Belmar said that the officers were in plain clothes, and were tracking an individual they suspected to be armed. The cops returned fire and then chased him, police said.

A man nearby said, “They killed my brother”. Four officers fired back when the man was struck and collapsed.

The four detectives, who have six to 12 years of experience, will be placed on administrative leave, a standard practice after a police-involved shooting. According to CNN, the unidentified young man was headed into surgery.

A large crowd gathered on West Florissant Avenue, where Brown was fatally shot on 2014 August 9, after holding a sombre, peaceful day of commemorations.

He said his son graduated from Normandy High School and that he and Brown “were real close”.

Eighteen-year-old Michael Brown’s death in Ferguson ignited months of fierce street protests and saw fighting between police and protesters, making the small Missouri city a focal point of a national debate on race relations and allegations of police brutality. A new round of rallies, which organizers said were aimed at bringing attention to police violence against racial minorities, are being planned in and around the St. Louis suburb following Sunday’s events.