Rumors swirl wherever there are waters of controversy. Today, I heard that Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson had resigned and that there was a call for Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon to resign. I think the rumor about Chief Jackson stemmed from the Missouri State Highway Patrol taking over much (all?) of the patrol responsibility for the protesting. Calls for the governor to resign? I doubt there are many voices calling for that.
I also thought today on whether Darren Wilson, the officer who shot Michael Brown, might be without culpability? If he shot an unarmed man, especially a retreating unarmed man and one with his hands up, it might seem there is no way he is not at fault? But, what do I know of the fear that he might have been under. Fear is the father of irrational behavior, and perhaps the investigation will determine Wilson had good cause to fear for his own life, even though Brown and Johnson (Dorian Johnson was the person with Brown) did not have guns. Yes, I'm doubting that. But, who knows.
And, I had thoughts today on whether Thomas Jackson should resign. After all, there is the over militarization of the crowd-control efforts, there is the lack of confidence with the community, and there are questions about whether his officers treat suspects humanely.
As I listened to a Sean Hannity interview of him, I began to wonder but what Jackson might be a very decent person, a good police chief, and not at all someone who should be pushed out of his job. There may be faults within his department. And, the militarization was a mistake. But, whether you get rid of Jackson should be based on whether he is an honest and good chief, not just whether a head should roll because someone has to be made accountable.
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