Thomas Jackson (police chief, Ferguson, MO)
| Thomas Jackson | |
|---|---|
| |
| Occupation | Chief of Police |
| Salary | $100,000 in 204 |
Thomas Jackson is a former police officer.[1][2] He was the Chief of Police of Ferguson, Missouri when one of his officers, Darren Wilson, killed an 18 year-old black man, Michael Brown, on August 9, 2014. He had been Chief since 2010. His department included 54 police officers.
The killing triggered outrage, and protests.[1][2] Jackson's response to community outrage was seen as heavy-handed, as it included tear gas and riot squads. Jackson resigned after a scathing report from the US Department of Justice criticized systemic racism within his department. His was the sixth resignation after the killing.
Jackson published a book about the incident, in July 2017, entitled “Policing Ferguson, Policing America: What Really Happened — and What the Country Can Learn From It.”[3] Primary premises of the book include the assertion that officer Wilson was justified to use deadly force, and he did so in an appropriate manner; and that Wilson, Jackson himself, and all other local policemen, were unfairly demonized by a hostile and irresponsible press. He was critical of Attorney General Eric Holder, who he argued, lead a premature rush to judgement.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ferguson police Chief Thomas Jackson resigns after scathing report, CBC News, 2015-03-11. Retrieved on 2022-07-19. “The resignation of Chief Thomas Jackson was the latest in a string of departures since the Justice Department said on March 4 that a months-long probe had uncovered a range of unlawful and unconstitutional practices in the St. Louis suburb.”
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Ferguson: Key figures in the Michael Brown case, CTV News. Retrieved on 2022-07-19. “Thomas Jackson was a police veteran long before he came to Ferguson. He spent more than 30 years with the St. Louis County Police Department, at one point serving as commander of a drug task force. Before that he was a SWAT team supervisor, undercover detective and hostage negotiator.”
- ↑ Harry Levins. Ex-police chief tells his own side of Ferguson shooting, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 2017-07-29. Retrieved on 2022-07-19. “Jackson has written a book that swerves from anger at what he sees as unfair condemnation of his police force to some well-reasoned thoughts on how police departments and communities can get along better.” mirror