A better way: Violence in Ferguson does not serve the search for answers

Someone is going to figure out exactly what happened on a city street in Ferguson, Missouri.

Someone will examine both sides of the story and someone will determine whether the police officer who shot 18-year-old Michael Brown was really defending himself or if this was an act of police brutality.

There will be answers; there always are.

But this story could have been a lot worse.

Extreme protests, which included looting and other violence against police, had become a real concern, as had what had seemed to be a "military response" from local police trying to keep order.

Of course, it escalated the tenor of the protests and of course it did not spark the response that is necessary when there is this kind of concern.

But that changed yesterday. An order by Missouri's governor sent in the State Highway Patrol, which has taken a different approach to dealing with those who gathered to protest the shooting and to call for answers.

And now there might be a discussion among people instead of the potential for more violence and an opportunity for those who have no real interest in a fair and just outcome to the investigation to loot and do damage in the name of justice.

The bottom line is simple. People should be allowed to protest and to call for answers -- both sides. And the officer in question has the right to present his case in a fair investigation.

No one has the right to hurt anyone else, to damage property or to loot stores. And anyone who is caught doing anything like that should be punished, period.

Free speech and the right to protest does not include the right to be a hoodlum.

The gatherings in Missouri are now more focused on a peaceful gathering and an honest expression of a desire for the truth.

The officers on the street are there to protect the public and to keep the response orderly.

And perhaps this will be the first step to a discussion about not only the shooting, but about crime, the police and the community.

And that is how you end up with real progress, an honest discussion and a fair examination of what happened.

But to have that kind of resolution, both sides have to be prepared to hear the truth and to listen. They have to talk honestly about all sides of the issue and to look for not just what they want to hear, but at what it is really like on the streets for both the authorities and the public.

Let's hope a real discussion and real progress ensue, not another chance for politics and posturing.

It could be a model for similar discussions that need to be had all across the nation as communities try to figure out how to deal with crime while protecting individual rights and keeping law enforcement officers safe.

Published in Editorials on August 15, 2014 11:02 AM