Police officer Travis Brown remains in critical condition after being seriously injured during a Friday night protest outside Ferguson police department headquarters.
A Ferguson police spokesperson said Monday afternoon that Brown’s condition was unchanged since he was admitted to an area hospital early Saturday morning with a severe brain injury.
The protest occurred on the 10th anniversary of Michael Brown’s killing by Darren Wilson, a Ferguson police officer who shot Brown in 2014.
Travis Brown was part of a team sent to arrest Elijah Gantt, 28, who was identified in a probable cause statement as one of the protesters who, just before midnight, broke and stole a large portion of fencing outside the police department.
The statement and subsequent charging documents detail that Gantt knocked the officer to the ground, causing his head to hit the pavement, which resulted in a severe head injury.
Gantt, of East St. Louis, was ordered held on a bond of $500,000. He's charged with first-degree assault, resisting arrest and property damage.
For the majority of the night, the protest was peaceful, police Chief Troy Doyle said during a press conference on Saturday. At least two other officers suffered minor injuries — one an ankle injury and another minor abrasions.
Brown has been with the department since January and previously served as a police officer with the St. Louis County Police Department.
St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell said Saturday that his office has charged four others in connection with the protest. The charges include assault, resisting or interfering with arrests and property destruction.
Doyle said moving forward, the public will be allowed to protest peacefully, but his office won’t tolerate violence or property destruction.
Lacretia Wimbley contributed reporting for this story.
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