FERGUSON (Sputnik) – On August 9, 2014, Darren Wilson, a white police officer, shot dead unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson.
Last November, a grand jury decided not to indict Wilson for the shooting prompting nationwide demonstrations against police brutality.
"We are still working with the DOJ to come out with how do we address that report – how do we actually address some of the court changes that need to happen, some of the police things that need to happen."
James stressed that over the past years the city has seen various changes, which had been overdue and were prompted by the Brown’s killing.
"I think we’re moving forward as a city. We’re doing a lot of stuff that has its origin in what should have been done prior to August 9th, and August 9th basically propelled the city, the region and the state, and the entire nation to address some of the disparity issues, some of these systematic issues that continue to affect a huge portion of our population."
The DOJ conducted an extensive investigation into Ferguson’s law enforcement practices following the police killing of an unarmed teenager Michael Brown in 2014.
The 100-page DOJ report revealed that the Ferguson Police Department and municipal court intentionally racially profile African-Americans and violate their Constitutionally-protected rights.
Following the release of the report, DOJ announced it would work with the Ferguson authorities to reform the law enforcement practices in the city and in surrounding municipalities.
