Yesterday, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon — surrounded by law enforcement leaders from the St. Louis area — said that “violence will not be tolerated” when the grand jury decision is announced in the case of the August 9 officer-involved shooting in Ferguson.
Nixon said people can protest, but they must “express themselves peacefully, without being threatened by individuals intent on creating violence and disorder.”
While the Missouri State Highway Patrol, St. Louis County Police, and St. Louis city police will ostensibly be in charge of patrolling any peaceful protest, Nixon said during yesterday’s press conference that he will activate the National Guard if violence erupts.
While Ferguson will be ground zero for any protests — whether they’re peaceful or violent — there is a very real possibility that people will take to the streets in cities across the country. Some online groups have begun to organize carpools and ride-shares to Ferguson from all over the country, but especially in cities where some degree of racial tension already exists — or places with a history of violent spontaneous demonstrations breaking out, police agencies should begin preparations for the prospect of protests.
Take the next few days to review your agency policies and procedures for managing peaceful protests, and your officer safety tactics and strategies for controlling violent crowds in the event that things go sideways in the streets of your city or town.
In roll call — and to the extent possible while you’re out on patrol — try to review what you’ve been trained in areas such as crowd dynamics, crowd behaviors, crowd control movements, field force concepts, and special-munitions use.
Remember that protesters with placards on PVC poles may also carry a potential weapon — there are online instructions for protesters to insert solid metal rods into the PVC tubing to make them heavier and more powerful as striking weapons.
According to reports, area schools have requested that the decision in Ferguson not be announced on a school day. I have been advised by several well-placed sources that the grand jury findings are very likely to come down on Sunday, November 16, three months and a week after Michael Brown got into that deadly confrontation with Officer Darren Wilson.
Reports also indicate that some stores in Ferguson have already boarded up their windows. They’re getting prepared. Are you?
