Ferguson, Missouri, is a city on edge. Hordes of protesters, community organizers, and anarchists are awaiting a decision from the grand jury on whether or not officer Darren Wilson will be indicted for the shooting death of Michael Brown on August 9.
The grand jury has been slow and deliberate, but there have also been many leaks to the media. Grand jury proceedings are, by law, supposed to be secret.
Along with leaks and tension, rumors run amok in Ferguson. Bloggers and activists on Twitter and elsewhere have falsely claimed to have insight into the grand jury’s timeline and proceedings, which is only adding to the tension. With a Grand Jury decision expected this month, St. Louis County prosecutor Robert McCulloch has stepped in to ease the tension, at least for now.
In a written statement, McCulloch acknowledged the anxiety by saying, “I realize that this is a much anticipated decision and that there is daily, if not hourly, speculation about when the announcement will be released.”
McCulloch reiterated what he’s said in the past, that he doesn’t expect the grand jury to make a decision “until mid to late November. That timeframe has not changed.”
“Once the work of the Grand Jury is completed and a determination,” McCulloch said, “my Office will advise the public and the media when their decision will be released. Until that notice comes directly from this Office, ANY AND ALL claims of an announcement date or time from any source, especially social media, are rank speculation and should be ignored.”
See McCulloch’s Statement Below:
