Berkeley shooting involved a white police officer killing a black 18-year-old, who, in turn, said that a gun was pointed at him. This recent shooting reignited tensions that have lingered since the death of Michael Brown in the neighboring town of Ferguson.
The mayor has been urging the residents of the St. Louis suburb to remain calm. However, a crowd of 300 people have gathered at the gas station where Antonio Martin was shot dead late Tuesday. They threw rocks and bricks at the area, a scene that was quite reminiscent of the violent protests that followed Brown's death.
Dozens of the protesters who met at the gas station started a vigil before they marched to the Interstate 170. The Chief of Berkeley Police, Frank McCall, informed KMOV-TV that six to eight people have already been arrested.
Unlike Brown's shooting, which was not caught on tape, the Mayor of Berkeley says surveillance footage showed Martin pulling out a gun on the unidentified 34-year-old police officer in the recent Berkeley shooting. According to Theodore Hoskins, the cop reportedly questioned Martin and another man about a theft at a local convenience store.
Additionally, another difference the Berkeley shooting has with Brown's case was that Brown was unarmed, while Martin was shown carrying a gun with him.
Hoskins said, "You couldn't even compare this with Ferguson or the Garner case in New York." He was referring to the chokehold death of Eric Garner, who was another black man that was killed by another white cop.
Hoskins, who happens to be also black, noted that more than half of Berkeley's police force is black, including the force's top command staff. Unlike in Ferguson, their officers are predominantly white and serve a mostly black community.
Jon Belmar, the St. Louis County Police Chief, did not provide any further details about the theft that Martin was being questioned about. According to Belmar, Martin pulled out a loaded 9mm handgun and the officer fired three shots while he was stumbling backwards. One of the shots hit Martin, who, in turn, did not fire the gun that he was reportedly carrying.
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