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Multiple Investigations Into Ferguson Shooting May Have Divergent Outcomes, Says Legal Expert

U.S. Attorney Gen. Eric Holder flew to Ferguson, Mo., to check on the federal investigation into possible civil rights abuses

Quote: “The federal and state investigations into the shooting of Michael Brown are independent of each other. The state and local police are looking into whether the police officer who shot Brown violated Missouri criminal law. The federal government is investigating whether the shooting violated Brown’s rights under the United States Constitution or federal civil rights law,” says Duke University law professor James Coleman Jr., who specializes in criminal law and wrongful convictions.

“These investigations are being carried out by independent sovereign governments, with overlapping jurisdictions. There have been numerous instances of local and state law enforcement agencies investigating possible crimes committed by police at the same time the federal government was investigating whether a victim’s civil rights were violated by the same conduct.”

“In the Rodney King case, local investigations into his beating by police officers resulted in state charges, but acquittals. However, the federal government charged the same officers with violating King’s civil rights and a federal jury convicted two of them.  In North Carolina, the two men who killed Eve Carson, a student at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, were prosecuted for her murder and convicted by both the State of North Carolina and the United States.”

Bio:James Coleman Jr. is a professor of law, co-director of the Wrongful Convictions Clinic and director of the Center for Criminal Justice and Professional Responsibility at Duke University's School of Law. He specializes in criminal law, wrongful convictions and appellate litigation.http://law.duke.edu/fac/colemanj/ 

Video sample:(Coleman begins at 13:55) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IB90KApFJKU&feature=youtube_gdata

For additional comment, contact Coleman at:jcoleman@law.duke.edu