Misdemeanor Charges Against Brown’s Friend

ST. LOUIS (CN) - Dorian Johnson, the man who was with Michael Brown on Aug. 9 when Ferguson police shot and killed him, was officially charged Thursday with resisting arrest and assault on an officer - both misdemeanors.

Johnson's arrest comes shortly after he filed a lawsuit against Ferguson and Darren Wilson, the now-former police officer who shot Brown.

Johnson said in the complaint that Wilson used excessive force and without fear of consequences because of a pattern of racism within the Ferguson Police Department.

St. Louis police say Johnson, 23, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of drug possession and interfering with the arrest of his brother, Demonte Johnson, 21. Police told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that officers found Dorian Johnson with a drink they suspected was a mixture of cough medicine and an illegal narcotic, but an analyst didn't find any narcotics.

The arrests came after officers were called about 3:21 p.m. Wednesday by someone reporting a large group of individuals who were possibly armed, police said.

A police source told the Post-Dispatch that Dorian Johnson discarded his drink when confronted by police.

In a probable-cause statement, a police officer said Dorian Johnson "struggled with me and tried to pry himself away from me."

"I had to physically struggle with Dorian Johnson until I was able to take him to the ground and get handcuffs on him," that officer added.

It has been nearly six months since the decision by a St. Louis County grand jury declined not to indict Wilson for Brown's death renewed the sometimes violent protests in Missouri against excessive force and racial profiling by police.

A separate independent investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice also found no grounds for federal criminal charges against Wilson.

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