Police killing prompts rioting, looting near St. Louis

A riot broke out in a St. Louis suburb late Sunday following a planned rally and candlelight vigil for Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager shot and killed by a police officer on Saturday.
After a few thousand people paid their respects at the vigil Sunday evening, some took to the streets of Ferguson, Mo., blocking traffic, smashing windows and looting stores.


“It could have been one of your kids,” Charles Staton, 35, yelled at police officers, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. “Protect and serve. They aren’t protecting.”

Television footage showed people standing on police cars, vandalizing vehicles and taunting officers clad in riot gear, the Associated Press reported. Some were seen looting a QuikTrip and a Wal-Mart, according to the Dispatch. People also looted a check-cashing store, a boutique and a small grocery store, making off with goods, including bottles of alcohol. And at least one fire was reported.
KSDK-TV reported Ferguson police called in 60 additional officers as well as officers from other jurisdictions to contain the crowd. Then, just after midnight, the station reported police were using tear gas to curb violence.

“My nose is burning, my eyes are burning, my throat is burning and officers nearby are dealing with this too,” station reporter Elizabeth Matthews said in a live report.
Earlier in the day, a few hundred protesters assembled outside Ferguson Police headquarters. Many marched into a nearby police building and chanted “Don’t shoot me” while holding up their hands. Officers didn’t use force and the crowd left, according to news reports. There were no immediate reports of injuries on Sunday, but Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson told KTLA-TV at least 20 police vehicles were damaged that evening.