Obama Believes Residents Should Decide Who Leads Ferguson - White House

US President Barack Obama’s administration believes that the people of Ferguson should make the decision about who is leading that city.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US President Barack Obama’s administration believes that those residing in the community of Ferguson, Missouri have the right to make their own decisions about who to elect in office, White House Spokesperson Josh Earnest said during a press briefing.

"It is the view of the [Obama] administration that it is the people in the community of Ferguson that should make the decision about who is leading that city,” Earnest said on Tuesday.

Earnest said that the “enhanced civil engagement” in Ferguson that the White House had recently seen was good for the city and a way that could help influence local leadership.

Ferguson has experienced intense scrutiny over the past year after the city was thrown into the national spotlight regarding race-related police brutality crimes.

Massive protests swept across Ferguson and the rest of the United States following the fatal shooting of unarmed African-American teenager Michael Brown in August of 2014 by white police officer Darren Wilson, calling for reform to the US police and justice systems.