Following more clashes between the police and protesters in Ferguson, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency on Saturday. The declaration allowed Nixon to impose a midnight-to-5 a.m. curfew on the St. Louis suburb, where demonstrators on Saturday night attempted to prevent a small group of people from looting local businesses. “We must first have and maintain peace. This is a test. The eyes of the world are watching,” said Nixon. “We cannot allow the ill will of the few to undermine the good will of the many.” At the same press conference, Missouri State Highway Patrol Captain Ronald Johnson said that trucks and tear gas would not be used to enforce the curfew.
The Los Angeles Times’ Matthew Pearce took some video of the tense press conference, which, he tweeted, was a “total mess.” Pearce also noted that Nixon did not say how long the state of emergency would last.
The curfew announcement was met with approval by Alderman Antonio French, who, thanks to his Twitter presence and subsequent media appearances, has emerged as one of the most recognizable voices of the Ferguson community:
But, as the Huffington Post’s Ryan J. Reilly noted, others were less enthusiastic about the plan:
Peaceful protests continued throughout the day in Ferguson. The Times reports that the Reverend Jesse Jackson “gathered with the crowd outside the Canfield Green apartments where [Mike Brown] lived, and “volunteers converged at the stores that were damaged to help with the cleanup.”
Meanwhile, the Associated Press reports that around 40 FBI agents were seen going “door-to-door” in the neighborhood where Brown died, “talking to people who might have seen or have information about the shooting.”
Unsurprisingly, the AP also reports that the Ferguson Police Department has not offered any more information or comments about Darren Wilson, the officer who shot the unarmed 18-year-old last week.
