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Nixon Says National Guard Needed, But Are Troops Wanted?

Gov. Jay Nixon is defending his decision to deploy Missouri National Guard troops to Ferguson.

Nixon issued a statement earlier this morning, announcing his decision to send in the Guard after what may have been the worst night of rioting since the protests began a week ago. Nixon explained his decision by citing "violent criminal acts of an organized and growing number of individuals, many from outside the community and state, whose actions are putting the residents and businesses of Ferguson at risk."

Gov. Jay Nixon
Credit Bill Greenblatt | UPI
Gov. Jay Nixon

Shortly before 12:30 p.m. today, the governor issued a follow-up statement saying that Brigadier Gen. Gregory Mason will be in charge of Guard troops in Ferguson, and that their primary mission will be to protect the Unified Command Center, which Nixon says was the "target last night of a coordinated attack."

The governor's decision to send in the Guard has not been universally welcomed. State Rep. Clem Smith, D-Velda Village Hills, condemned Nixon's decision to call out the Missouri National Guard. He says he finds it hard to believe that there is any organized effort by rioters to conduct acts of violence.

"If you need an army to come in to handle a handful of knuckleheads, we've got a bigger problem," Smith said in a phone interview this afternoon.

In addition, Smith says he encountered two rival gang members on the streets of Ferguson Saturday night. They were talking with each other about the fatal shooting of Michael Brown.

"(It) was a productive conversation ... (a) peaceful dialogue," Smith said, "I didn't see people trying to fight each other (or) stab each other ... it was a real conversation."

Smith also released a written statement earlier today, in which he said "the overwhelming majority of protesters are peaceful and law abiding," and that deploying the National guard is "an ill-advised escalation that could serve to make an already tense situation worse."

Smith's written statement reads, in part:

"Addressing the grievances of those in our community who have been victims of police brutality, racial profiling, employment discrimination and institutional racism is the only way to bring calm to the area. Treating Ferguson as an occupied territory by placing tanks and armed soldiers on its streets is a huge leap in the opposite direction and will only further the distrust of government in my community."

House Speaker Tim Jones, R-Eureka, says he approves of the governor's action, but he also criticized his leadership as a whole.

"What you're seeing is for the first time in this governor's six years in office, he's being required to lead from the front," Jones said. "This is a governor who's typically been a very reactionary governor; he has typically led from behind, he has typically waited to react to situations."

Dave Robertson, a political science professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, says any governor is put in a tough position when the National Guard is needed to respond to civil unrest.

"In this case, (Gov. Nixon) is being criticized for (both) going too slowly, and for going at all," Robertson said. "If the situation in Ferguson calms down, if, for example, the people who have been engaged in late night activities ... if they begin to just tire out after all this time, I think Nixon will be given some credit for beginning to put in motion the things that brought the unrest to at least temporary closure."

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon said the National Guard would mostly be limited to protecting the police command center, which has been set up in a shopping mall in Ferguson.
Credit Véronique LaCapra, St. Louis Public Radio
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon said the National Guard would mostly be limited to protecting the police command center, which has been set up in a shopping mall in Ferguson.

Nixon said he took the action because “as long as there are vandals and looters and threats to the people and property of Ferguson, we must take action to protect our citizens.”

The Guard seems to be saying around the command center, which is in a shopping mall about half a mile south of the Canfield Green apartment complex where police officer Darren Wilson shot Michael Brown on Aug. 9.

Brigadier Gen. Gregory Mason will oversee the National Guard operations, but overall command will remain in the hands of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The governor also said that the midnight-to-5 a.m. curfew had been lifted.

It’s still not known how many National Guard troops are currently in Ferguson. But reaction to their arrival has been mixed.

Hazelwood resident Charlee Johnson and her dog Chico participate in a peaceful demonstration across from the police station in Ferguson on Monday.
Credit Véronique LaCapra, St. Louis Public Radio
Hazelwood resident Charlee Johnson and her dog Chico participate in a peaceful demonstration across from the police station in Ferguson on Monday.

Ericka Artz lives in Chesterfield but works for the Ferguson Fire Department. She said it’s about time the police took stronger action to crack down on the violence. “The fire and EMS workers, along with the residents of Ferguson, need protecting,” Artz said. “This has gone on long enough.”

Hazelwood resident Charlee Johnson, however, thinks bringing in the National Guard ― and arming police with military equipment ― just makes it more likely that innocent people will get hurt.

Johnson has been coming to Ferguson every day for the past week in solidarity with the peaceful protests.

“I’m just hoping for justice when it’s all said and done,” Johnson said. “And I hope that this will bring about a change overall in policemen gunning down unarmed civilians.”

Follow Marshall Griffin on Twitter:   @MarshallGReport

Follow Véronique LaCapra on Twitter:  @KWMUScience Help inform our coverage

This report contains information gathered with the help of our Public Insight Network. To see more responses, in addition to those used for this report, please click here. To learn more about the network and how you can become a source, please click here.

Copyright 2020 St. Louis Public Radio. To see more, visit .

Marshall Griffin is the Statehouse reporter for St. Louis Public Radio.
Marshall Griffin
St. Louis Public Radio State House Reporter Marshall Griffin is a native of Mississippi and proud alumnus of Ole Miss (welcome to the SEC, Mizzou!). He has been in radio for over 20 years, starting out as a deejay. His big break in news came when the first President Bush ordered the invasion of Panama in 1989. Marshall was working the graveyard shift at a rock station, and began ripping news bulletins off an old AP teletype and reading updates between songs. From there on, his radio career turned toward news reporting and anchoring. In 1999, he became the capital bureau chief for Florida's Radio Networks, and in 2003 he became News Director at WFSU-FM/Florida Public Radio. During his time in Tallahassee he covered seven legislative sessions, Governor Jeb Bush's administration, four hurricanes, the Terri Schiavo saga, and the 2000 presidential recount. Before coming to Missouri, he enjoyed a brief stint in the Blue Ridge Mountains, reporting and anchoring for WWNC-AM in Asheville, North Carolina. Marshall lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Julie, their dogs, Max and Liberty Belle, and their cat, Honey.
Véronique LaCapra
Science reporter Véronique LaCapra first caught the radio bug writing commentaries for NPR affiliate WAMU in Washington, D.C. After producing her first audio documentaries at the Duke Center for Documentary Studies in N.C., she was hooked! She has done ecological research in the Brazilian Pantanal; regulated pesticides for the Environmental Protection Agency in Arlington, Va.; been a freelance writer and volunteer in South Africa; and contributed radio features to the Voice of America in Washington, D.C. She earned a Ph.D. in ecosystem ecology from the University of California in Santa Barbara, and a B.A. in environmental policy and biology from Cornell. LaCapra grew up in Cambridge, Mass., and in her mother’s home town of Auxerre, France. LeCapra reported for St. Louis Public Radio from 2010 to 2016.
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