FERGUSON, Missouri — On August 9, 2014, Michael Brown and a friend were walking down the middle of Canfield Drive, a two-lane street in suburban St. Louis. Ferguson, Missouri, when a police officer drove by and told them to use the sidewalk.
After an exchange of words, the white officer confronted the 18-year-old Brown, who was black. The situation escalated, with the officer and Brown getting into an argument. The officer shot and killed Brown, who was unarmed.
This story is part of an ongoing AP series examining the impact, legacy and fallout of the so-called Ferguson uprising, which sparked the deadly shooting of Brown a decade ago.
Friday marks the 10th anniversary of the shooting, a pivotal moment in the national Black Lives Matter movement that prompted a reflection on the treatment of black people in Ferguson and elsewhere in the St. Louis region by police and the courts.
A timeline of key events following the shooting:
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9 AUG 2014: Brown’s bloodied body stays on the street four hours in the summer heat. People in the neighborhood later lash out at the police, saying they had abused the body.
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AUG 10, 2014: People protest Brown’s death after a candlelight vigil smash car windows and carry armloads of food, alcohol and other items stolen from stores. Some protesters stand on police cars and challenge officers. A QuikTrip convenience store on West Florissant Avenue, just blocks from where Brown was shot, is looted and burned. Other businesses are damaged or destroyed. It is the first of several nights of unrest. The protests help galvanize the Black Lives Matter movement that formed after the 2012 shooting death of black teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida and the acquittal of the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot him.
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AUG. 11, 2014: The FBI opens an investigation into Brown’s death, and two men who said they saw the shooting tell reporters that Brown had his hands up when the officer fired repeatedly. That night, police in riot gear fire tear gas and rubber bullets to try to disperse a crowd of protesters.
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AUG. 14, 2014: The Missouri State Highway Patrol takes over security and strips officers from Ferguson and St. Louis County of their law enforcement powers after days of unrest. The shift in command comes after images from the protests showed many officers equipped with military-grade equipment, including armored vehicles, bulletproof vests and assault rifles. Photos circulating online showed officers pointing their weapons at protesters.
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AUG. 15, 2014: Police identify the officer who shot Brown as Darren Wilson, a 2011 employee. They also release surveillance footage that shows Brown grabbing large quantities of cigarillos from behind the counter at Ferguson Market and shoving an employee who confronted him as he left the store. Police say Brown took nearly $50 worth of cigarillos. The release of the footage angers protesters.
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AUG 16, 2014: Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declares a state of emergency and imposes a curfew in Ferguson.
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AUG 18, 2014: Nixon calls the National Guard to Ferguson to help restore order. He lifts the curfew.
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AUG. 20, 2014: U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder visits Ferguson to make commitments about the investigation into Brown’s death and to meet with investigators and Brown’s family. A grand jury begins hearing evidence to determine whether to charge Wilson.
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AUG 21, 2014: Nixon orders the National Guard to withdraw from Ferguson.
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SEPT. 25, 2014: Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson releases a video of his apology to Brown’s family and attempts to march in solidarity with protesters. The move backfires when Ferguson officers scuffle with protesters and arrest one person moments after Jackson, who is white, joins the group.
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NOV. 17, 2014: Nixon declares a state of emergency and reactivates the National Guard, pending a grand jury decision. He places the Ferguson Police Department under his command to provide security in Ferguson, with orders to work as a unified command with other departments.
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NOV. 18, 2014: Nixon appoints 16 people to the Ferguson Commission, an independent panel charged with investigating race relations, failing schools and other social and economic issues. Nine of the members are black. Seven are white.
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NOV 24, 2014: St. Louis County District Attorney Bob McCulloch announces that the grand jury has decided not to file charges Wilson. Protests that were passionate but peaceful earlier in the day turn violent. At least a dozen buildings and several police cars are burned, officers are hit with rocks and batteries, and reports of gunfire force some flights into St. Louis to be diverted.
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NOV 29, 2014: Wilson announces his resignation from the Ferguson Police Department, effective immediately.
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MARCH 4, 2015: The U.S. Department of Justice announces it will not prosecute Wilson for Brown’s death, but releases a damning report finding racial bias in the way police and courts treat black people in the community.
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MARCH 11, 2015: Jackson resigns effective March 19, the sixth police chief to resign or be fired following the Justice Department report. He is replaced on an interim basis by his top commander, Lt. Col. Al Eickhoff, who is also white.
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MARCH 12, 2015: Two St. Louis area police officers are shot outside the Ferguson police station during a protest by protesters. Three days later, a 20-year-old man is charged with first-degree assault in the shooting.
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APRIL 7, 2015: In the first municipal election in Ferguson since Brown’s death, two of the three elected city council members are black. Black people now hold three of the six seats, up from one seat before the election.
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APRIL 23, 2015: Lawyers for Brown’s family sue the cities of Ferguson, Wilson and Jackson.
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MAY 20, 2015: The large makeshift memorial that stood for months in the middle of Canfield Drive, where Brown’s body had been, is removed on his 19th birthday. A permanent plaque is installed nearby in his memory.
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JUNE 9, 2015: Ferguson hires a new city judge and interim city manager, both black.
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JULY 10, 2015: Nixon signs legislation limiting the ability of cities to profit from traffic tickets and court fines, the first major step state lawmakers take to address concerns raised after Brown’s death. Among other changes, the law reduces the percentage of revenue most cities can collect from traffic tickets and fees from 30 percent to 20 percent.
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JULY 22, 2015: Andre Anderson, a black police chief who has served in the Phoenix suburbs for many years, is introduced as Ferguson’s new interim police chief.
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SEPT 14, 2015: The Ferguson Commission releases its report discussing the economic and racial factors that contributed to the unrest following Brown’s death.
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JANUARY 27, 2016: Ferguson announces a tentative deal with the Justice Department to reform the city’s police department and municipal court system. The recommended overhaul follows seven months of negotiations.
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FEB 9, 2016: Ferguson City Council votes unanimously to review its agreement with the Justice Department, proposing seven amendments that the mayor says were made after an analysis showed the deal was so expensive it could lead to Ferguson’s termination. The Justice Department responds by filing suit against Ferguson.
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MARCH 2016: Former Miami police officer Delrish Moss, who is black, is named Ferguson’s police chief after a nationwide search.
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APRIL 19, 2016: Ferguson and the Justice Department reach an agreement that ends the lawsuit and requires sweeping reforms to the city’s police and justice systems.
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APRIL 4, 2017: Incumbent Mayor James Knowles III, who is white, is re-elected to a third three-year term, facing opposition from Ella Jones, a black city councilwoman.
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JUNE 20, 2017: A federal judge in St. Louis approves a wrongful death lawsuit settlement which earned Brown’s parents $1.5 million.
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JULY 26, 2017: The Ferguson Community Empowerment Center opens on the site of the QuikTrip convenience store that burned down the day after Brown’s death. The center houses the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, the Salvation Army and other offices.
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SEPT. 15, 2017: Former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley, who is white, is acquitted in the 2011 death of 24-year-old Anthony Lamar Smith, who was black. Smith was suspected of a drug transaction and was killed after a chase with police. The mass protests that followed Stockley’s acquittal are the largest in the St. Louis region since the immediate aftermath of Brown’s death.
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7 AUG. 2018: In a stunning surprise, Ferguson City Councilman Wesley Bell is defeating 28-year incumbent McCulloch in the Democratic primary for St. Louis County prosecutor. Bell, who is Black, ran unopposed in the November election and took office in January 2019. McCulloch, who is white, was seen as an old-school, law-and-order prosecutor who has faced criticism for his handling of the Wilson research. Bell campaigned on a platform of reforms, saying he would work to reduce incarceration and create a unit to investigate officer-involved shootings.
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APRIL 2, 2019: Brown’s mother, Lesley McSpadden, loses her bid for a seat on Ferguson City Council. She finished third in a three-way race in Ferguson’s 3rd Ward. She vows to remain active in the community.
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JULY 23, 2019: New Police Chief Jason Armstrong is sworn in. Including interim chiefs, Armstrong, who is Black, becomes Ferguson’s fifth chief since Jackson stepped down in 2015.
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JUNE 2, 2020: Municipal Councilor Ella Jones Elected Mayor of Fergusonand became the city’s first black mayor. Knowles, the three-term incumbent, was unable to seek a fourth three-year term due to term limits.
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AUG 4, 2020: Cori Bush, who rose to prominence for her leadership during the Ferguson protests, angers longtime US Congressman William Lacy Clay in Missouri’s 1st District Democratic primary. Bush went on to win easily in November 2020.
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AUGUST 2021: Frank McCall is promoted to police chief, replacing Armstrong, who has left for another job.
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APRIL 2023: Ella Jones is re-elected mayor, winning by 21 votes.
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APRIL 2023: Troy Doyle is named police chief, replacing McCall, who has resigned. Doyle served more than three decades with the St. Louis County Police Department.
___ AUG 6, 2024: Bell, the St. Louis County district attorney, defeats Bush in Democratic primary in Missouri’s 1st districtPro-Israel groups spent millions to oust Bush, who had spoken out strongly against Israel’s response to the Hamas attack in October.
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View the APs full coverage about the Michael Brown shooting and the events that followed.