Gov. Nixon hands Ferguson response over to Highway Patrol

Gov. Jay Nixon, who was in Ferguson on Thursday, pledged in the morning an “operational shift” in the police response to the protests connected to the death of teenager Michael Brown at the hands of the authorities in the north St. Louis County suburb. And then he followed that up in the afternoon by immediately handing over direct supervision of security responsibilities in the city of Ferguson to the Missouri Highway Patrol.

Ferguson native and Troop C Commander Capt. Ron Johnson will now supervise security efforts in the town plagued by unrest following the death of the 18-year-old Brown on Aug. 9.

Nixon made the announcement at the University of Missouri-St. Louis alongside Johnson, St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley and St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay after visiting sites related to the protests and the scene of the shooting, according to a news release from Nixon’s office. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Johnson pledged to protect Ferguson, but allow protesters to have their say.

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