In your opinion, what is Darren Wilson guilty of?

[11 Bravo]

What (if anything) do you believe Wilson should have been charged with?

I tend to come down on the side of Voluntary Manslaughter. I think a black kid first sassed him, then frightened him.
He had a gun, and believed he was operating under the color of law, so he used it, unlawfully in my opinion.

Embarrassed, scared, and trigger-happy is a combustible mixture, particularly in a cop.

43 votes, 2 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	Murder 1 (Premeditated, with malice)
	2 (5%)
	Murder 2 (With malice, but not premeditated)
	15 (35%)
	Voluntary Manslaughter (Heat of Passion)
	16 (37%)
	Involuntary Manslaughter (Negligent homicide)
	2 (5%)
	Nothing
	8 (19%)
	2 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[jschurchin]

1. What do you call it

when a UNARMED man with his hands in the air gets shot and killed. In my book that's MURDER 1 Badge or no Badge.

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

5. As a prosecutor I would have been confident in vol. manslaughter

Murder 1 requires premeditation and 2 involves NOT.in the heat.of the moment so the proper charge is vol man

[11 Bravo]

8. I think premeditation is a stretch in this case.

Did he go to work that night intending to shoot an unarmed black kid? I don't believe he did, and premeditation is required for a Murder 1 charge. I can understand the passion behind your words, but legally I believe Murder 2 is the most Wilson could be charged with.
(And that was a close call for me, but I honestly believe he was more scared and embarrassed that he was acting out of personal malice toward Michael.)

[0rganism]

24. as i understand it, premeditation doesn't have to be an extended thing

There is variation in the definition by state law, and i don't know what MO's laws are in this regard, but minimally it involves making a clear conscious decision to carry through with a lethal action, and by the time Brown had retreated from the vehicle Wilson's pursuit with intent to kill certainly could qualify as premeditation. That said, as NoJusticeNoPeace indicates, i would guess most responsible prosecutors probably would opt for a lesser charge like voluntary manslaughter both as it's easier to prove, and as a possible target for a plea bargain.

[hifiguy]

2. If I were a prosecutor

I would have charged him with Murder 2 and Voluntary Manslaughter as a lesser included - at least that's the way it's done in Minnesota. Murder 3 would also be an option in some jurisdictions. IT clearly wasn't Murder 1, at least as it's defined under the law I know from a few years clerking for trial judges. But a strong and winnable case could be made for Murder 2/3 or VM.

[Niko]

3. Absolutely pathetic

Emotions over reason, all over the place around here today. Tell me, what exactly about my hidden thread was rude, or disruptive, or otherwise inappropriate? Can't have an opinion contrary to the mob.

[HERVEPA]

6. Yes, you are Absolutely pathetic

[11 Bravo]

9. Are you talking to me? Because I have no idea ...

what you are referring to.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

14. Bless your heart...

[ScreamingMeemie]

16. Opinions =/= mobbing

[yeoman6987]

22. What hidden thread? This looks complete

Not even a hidden reply? If you want to complain, you need to provide some substance or else it just brings confusion and nothing out of it.

[sarisataka]

4. You asked two questions

I am always willing to give the presumption of innocence until all evidence is presented and cross examined by the defense. So at this time he is not guilty of anything.

Given the circumstances I think he should be facing a charge of voluntary manslaughter. Since I do not have access to the evidence, murder 2 may be more appropriate.

[oldandhappy]

7. Over reaction

[HereSince1628]

10. He committed homicide, the things on your poll consider homicide's legal qualifications

There isn't any doubt that a homicide took place.

[11 Bravo]

13. Homicide is the taking of a human life as done by another human.

It's not always a crime (although I believe in this case it was). Other than that, I'm not sure that I see your point.

[HereSince1628]

21. My point is -that- is something of which we can be certain.

the rest is uncertain and highly dependent upon whether one is seeking justice or service to the law.

[Mike Nelson]

11. One of the manslaughters is possible...

...will have to respect the Jury until the other investigation concludes. I'm no longer thinking he was either shot in the back, or while giving up, as has been suggested.

[TorchTheWitch]

12. so easy to have an opinion like this when not bothering to look at

the evidence we now have.

But no body cared about evidence from the start and still don't. So much nicer to continue with stupid ignorant opinions and not bothering with the evidence.

[ScreamingMeemie]

17. 12 shots n/t

[Lurks Often]

26. There is no exact number of shots where justifiable homicide suddenly becomes murder

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1986_FBI_Miami_shootout

Note that Platt was shot 12 times, including one bullet wound that was consider non-survivable (see note 11 at the link). Platt was still alive and trying to escape when wounded FBI Agent Mireles approached the car and killed both Platt and his accomplice.

[Kalidurga]

15. Premeditated

It only takes seconds to premeditate legally. If someone goes into a bank with a gun (just to use to scare the teller) and things go foul ie an unarmed person tries to tackle the would be robber and then the robber shoots them they will likely be charged with premeditation if the tackler moves away for a second then gets shot.

However, if I were to prosecute Darren Wilson I would go for a lesser more easily proven and less inflammatory charge. It seems most people have a blindness to the fact that cops can be corrupt and bigoted.

[Mass]

18. The question the grand jury had to answer was not whether he was guilty, but whether there were

enough events here to justify a trial.

Killing an unarmed man by shooting 12 bullets, most of which were shot when he was far from Brown, should automatically be enough for probable cause (except for Murder 1 which implies premeditation).

After that, it would have been to a jury to hear both sides of the story and to judge in public. Here, they judged Wilson behind closed doors.

[Glassunion]

19. I think he was guilty of nothing

I was not there.
I did not sit through all of the testimony on the jury.
I did not read through all of the documentation that was presented in the case.

I cannot say he is guilty or not. At this point it would be purely emotional, and that is bad form to base a decision of guilt on.

[alcibiades_mystery]

20. First degree murder

He pulled up on them to intimidate them with gun drawn. The gun went off accidentally in the car while Brown was at the window. The struggle ensued and the gun discharged again, possibly striking Brown. At the point, Wilson could have let Brown run off and faced the disciplinary action of his irresponsible behavior. But he chose, and had time to decide, to kill this young man in order to cover his own tracks. It was a premeditated murder, though of course the premeditation lasted only a minute or two as he determined what he needed to do. Rather than be fired and possibly charged for his poor handling of his firearm, he murdered that young man. Make no mistake, Darren Wilson is s very dangerous person, and a murderer.

[tenderfoot]

23. Other: Being a gutless puke

Thank you.

[KingCharlemagne]

25. Probable cause exists for a Murder 1 indictment based on the final two head shots, which

provide evidence of pre-meditation.

Charge him with Murder 1 and let him plead out to Murder 2. Happens all the time . . . when the defendant is a person of color.