The protests in Ferguson, Mo., have begun to wind down, but tensions remain high between police and those who have taken to the streets.
In a video captured by, Caleb-Michael Files, a social media producer for Youngist, a St. Ann police officer points his gun at media members as he threatens to kill them. The overzealous reaction has now resulted in the officer being removed from duty.
Files has identified the officer as Ray Albers of the St. Ann Police department, though that remains unconfirmed. Files tells the Daily Dot that St. Ann Police confirmed to him that Ray Albers was on duty Tuesday night. He also says that he is “100 percent sure” the officer in the video is Ray Albers.
In the video, the police officer approaches Files with his weapon drawn, saying “I will fucking kill you! Get back. Get back.” A sargent eventually approaches the officer, placing his hand on the weapon to point it towards the ground, as bystanders plead with the sergeant to take the officer’s weapon away.
Files contacted the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Missouri, which filed a complaint against the offending officer. Late Wednesday afternoon, the ACLU announced that the officer in the video has been removed from duty.
SUCCESS! In response to our letter, officer who threatened to kill #Ferguson protesters has been removed from duty https://t.co/53WP8Ht0Mu
— ACLU of Missouri (@aclu_mo) August 20, 2014
Photo via cabralgabriel/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
