Attorney General Eric Holder said that “damn punks” were responsible for the shooting of two police officers monitoring a protest rally in Ferguson Thursday morning.
A 41-year-old St. Louis County Police officer was shot in the shoulder, and a 32-year-old officer with the Webster Groves Police Department sustained a bullet wound near the ear while patrolling a crowd in front of the Ferguson police department.
Both officers are expected to survive, but a massive manhunt is underway for the shooter.
“What happened last night was a pure ambush,” Holder said at a press conference Thursday.
“This was not someone trying to bring healing to Ferguson. This was a damn punk. Punk who trying to sow discord in an area that is trying to get its act together and trying bring together a community that has been fractured for too long.”
The shooting occurred several hours after protesters gathered Wednesday evening. The demonstrations began after Ferguson police chief Tom Jackson’s announcement earlier in the day that he will be stepping down next week.
It is unclear where the shooter or shooters of the police officers were located prior to opening fire. St. Louis County police chief Jon Belmar said they were hidden within the crowd of protesters. Community activists disputed that claim.
The police department has come under intense scrutiny following the shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown by Darren Wilson, a white Ferguson police officer. That case sparked a Department of Justice pattern and practice investigation.
While the DOJ cleared Wilson of violating Brown’s civil rights in the August shooting, the agency released a report last week slamming the city for a pattern of racial bias against black residents. The agency found that Ferguson police officers issued a disproportionate number of citations to black residents.
Besides Jackson’s departure, Ferguson’s city manager resigned earlier this week. Three other city officials also stepped down. Protesters who gathered Wednesday sought more. Many wanted mayor James Knowles to resign as well.
“Seeing this attack last night really kind of turned my stomach because in the last week since the Justice Department released its pattern and practice report on Ferguson I thought we’d begun to see really important signs of progress,” Holder said Thursday.
He also speculated on the shooters’ motive.
“This really disgusting and cowardly attack might have been intended to unravel any sense of progress, but I hope that that does not in fact happen.”
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