>> and welcome back. we are once again at the command center here, near ferguson, missouri where law enforcement is getting ready for yet another night where they will be watching and seeing exactly what demonstrators do to keep things under control. i'm joie chen. i'm joined by al jazeera's tony harris. there is a night of special coverage. there are so many developments and we're watching closely to see what the night ahead brings tony. >> we are, this is one of the more important nights here in

ferguson. the hope here is that they can build on law enforcement, the community can build on what happened last night. peaceful demonstrations to where there was clergy, we're talking about elders from this community in the crowd last night, keeping the temperature down on the demonstrations, will that carry over into tonight? that's what everyone is loapg for, police in the community, tense, fingers crossed. >> it's been very tense day on the street. law enforcement has pushed the media back into the corners here and they've cut off traffic to this area. a repeat of what they did last night, though it did seem to be effective. we'll take a look at that, the developments throughout the day with the attorney general here in the area and we'll learn much more coming up as "america tonight" begins right now. on "americ "america tonight," te country's top law man in

ferguson. >> it's important because it shows their concern what's happening in stlowz. that's going to speak -- st. louis because that speaks volumes. >> as the local prosecutor suggestions a long -- suggests a long investigation is in the offing. and tensions again reach the a boiling point. then "america tonight" special report flash point ferguson, the way forward. good evening, and welcome to this special edition of "america tonight." on a special night of coverage on al jazeera america. i'm joie chen once again at the command center near ferguson, missouri, where law enforcement is working hard to make sure they are prepared, for demonstrators who are returning to the streets, west florison

street, pushing anyone back that does not need to be in the area from this particular area and keeping the media at bay mostly confined to the area of the command center. is it though a day as captain ron johnson, he is the head of the security detail for ferguson, is it a day as he has said that will mark a turning point in what's going on in this community? this has been an important one for the community as a very rare visit by the u.s. attorney general eric holder sent by the president to begin civil rights investigation of the events this took place here just over a week ago. he will lead that investigation. but in the meantime, there were disturbing clashes throughout the last 11 days following the death of 18-year-old michael brown, unarmed, when he was shot and killed by a police officer's gun. the developments of the day include some important strategic development of the law enforcement security detail that was able to keep crowds quiet for most of the night last

night. there were still however arrests. about 47 that we understand. but importantly there was no tear gas used, there were is some confrontations but no tear gas brought out. attorney general holder met with michael brown's parents we are told, he assured that he had put his best people on the investigation. the local prosecutor, meantime, who was under pressure himself over the situation, says this is an investigation of the grand jury that is likely to take weeks, week going forward, maybe longer than that. all this putting together a lot of disparate images through course of this day. "america tonight's" lori jane gliha, has been look at the investigation what comes from here. here is her report. >> reporter: outside the buzz

westfal justicwestfall justice . >> hands up. >> don't shoot. >> he says wednesday's visit from the attorney general himself is just what the community needs. >> i think this visit is pivotal. when somebody comes to see you to see what's going on, that shows i'm genuinely concerned about this situation and i think that's going to speak volumes. >> eric holder wasted no time stepping off his plane and into the community where emotions have boiled over, after the shooting of an african american teen, michael brown. he met with ron johnson and 50 community members, some sharing their personal experiences having to deal with local police

officers. the attorney general promised the most experienced justice department prosecutors are handling the investigation, they are charged with determining whether there has been a pattern or practice of harassment by the ferguson police. >> i want holder to look at this situation himself, and evaluate it. he's an attorney. he knows, use your own judgment as an attorney and think about the situation that has been going on here and think, what would be in the best interests of justice for both parties? for the officer, and for the victim, and for the community. >> meanwhile across town protesters are expressing their concerns about the local investigation into the shooting and the officer who fired the shots. >> justice has to be served to darren wilson. >> they are worried about the man heading it up, prosecutor bob mccullough, the son of a

white police officer killed by a black man in 1964. >> i think he should step out of the process. ask for an independent prosecuting attorney to step in for this case. >> the prosecutor has been in office since 1991 and was reelected most recently this month. he defended himself on local radio saying it's up to the governor to take him off the case otherwise he is the man for the job. >> anybody and everybody and citizens walking down the street express they'd opinion to governor nixon. he's the only one that can do anything about it and this is one of those distractions in this case that's just tragic. we're losing focus of why we are all here. >> reporter: the prosecutor planned to present evidence to a grand jury wednesday including this surveillance video apparently showing mike brown involved in a robbery at a convenient stores. a -- a convenience store.

other accounts suggest brown was charging towards officer when he was killed. both the local investigation and the federal civil rights case will proceed at the same time. and it will be weeks, perhaps months, before the completely path becomes clear. "america tonight's" lori jane gliha rejoins us here. lori jane, i know this was a long day not only you but the people following attorney general holder, this is going to be a complicated investigation not only the civil rights side but the criminal investigation as well. >> you got to remember there's two different investigations going on here, the feds are on the ground, interviewing hundreds of people, trying to find out if there are other events going into, local investigators doing their criminal case as well, and the different autopsies that have been done in this case, the local government, the private autopsy, on behalf of the brown

family and a federal autopsy too. >> multiple autopsies and a number of questions how those will work together. is there also a question that has been raised a number of times on the streets, that is, wasn't there a quicker way to do this, couldn't this have gone through the grand jury, couldn't they have charged the officer with a criminal complaint? >> i asked and he said automatically, all of the case go to the grand jury and they determine if there is good to be an -- going to be an indictment. the grand jury is made up of citizens from st. louis county has been described as a diverse group as well. but today's kind of the first day that any sort of information could have been presented to them. it could be weeks. >> thank you for the information. "america tonight's" lori jane gliha, with us. a storm seems to be blowing up. law enforcement is getting ready for what they hope will not be another stormy night but a

reason for them to be concerned. maybe the weather will hold down demonstrators, maybe it will keep things calm. maybe it will keep the crowds away. we'll take a break from our special coverage. when we return we'll talk about a number of things including a case that has great echoes of what happened here in ferguson, missouri, a case of michael brown, we'll follow up with michael okwu, and also we'll talk to a plan who is a criminal defense attorney form he prosecutor, to talk about why it is sometimes so difficult to prosecute the law. prosecute the law.

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>> welcome back to "america tonight," special coverage, a flash point ferguson and the way forward. we're talking about that just before the break, we spoke with "america tonight" correspondent lori jane gliha about some of the legal complexities that legal experts will face in the coming weeks not only attorney general eric holder, in town for this day. the charges against the police officer involved darren wilson remain on the table. prosecuting law enforcement officers as it turns out is quite a bit of a challenge. the most complete one done so far involving these kinds of issues, coming from the k ato institute, about a 20 month period there were 8300 credible reports alleging police

misconduct, 11,000 officers involved, more than 3200 cases resulted in criminal charges against officers. however in the same period of those 3200-plus criminal charges, a thousand resulted in convictions, charges perhaps reduced charges in many cases, and the average length of incarceration as a result, just over 34 months . these are interesting statistics to look at and for that we're going oturn othomas meserow, a criminal defense attorney who was also a prosecutor. is this an indication of how we view law enforcement in the criminal justice system? >> well, many american citizens want to believe in their police department. they have great pride and security in believing the police are professional, that they're restrained, that they are measured, that they have the optimum training and wisdom and

they keep the criminals away. unfortunately this can result in a tremendous bias in favor of a police officer who has newspaper of those qualities. i think -- who has none of those qualities. i think our police officers are very, very measured professionals. but they sometimes also have bad guys, they take force and use it in a very criminal type manner and they have to be prosecuted to the utmost. now, if you look in poorer black neighborhoods you will see a very different opinion about many police officers. they are like an invading army, they devalue people, and they think their actions are the result of bigotry, racism and bias. depending what ethnic group you're talking to you have a different opinion on how measured and careful police officers tend to be. >> a concern and question about why the police officer is not

charged with criminal charge. they say for example they would have been charged themselves if a civilian had shot another civilian on the street there would be an immediate criminal charge. is there a different burden of proof as it were, a different standard of charging a police officer. i know for example sovereign immunity for governments, but what about charges against a law enforcement officer? >> there are legal standards that apply the pall american citizens including a police officer. if a police officer murders someone and breaks the law, they are supposed to be prosecuted like any other citizen. what you have to be concerned about is psychologically and emotionally, people give tremendous benefit of the doubt to the police officer. they know they put their lives on the line, they are often outnumbered, they don't know when they are going to be

attacked, their security their family's security. that bias, to the extreme can allow guilty police officers to walk free where someone who was not a police officer would be convicted. >> tom meserow, criminal defense attorney, also of the prosecutor's office as well. we appreciate you being with us and your insight. >> thank you joie, also. appreciate it. >> there is a collateral we look to from southern california and that is one that has echoes of what happened here in the ferguson, missouri neighborhood. we follow up with "america tonight's" michael okwu. >> reporter: protesters marching on the streets of downtown los angeles by the thousands. raising hands over their heads and chanting what's rapidly becoming the signature slogan against police brutality.

>> hands up don't shoot hands up don't shood. >> they came to protest against killing of another unarmed black man at the hands of law enforcement, to protest what they say is a rising epidemic. >> i want to remember my can you ain as a human -- my cousin as a human being. >> there is no equality at all. one there are white cops, two, black or brown civilians getting killed for no reason at all. >> reporter: on august 11th, two days after michael brown was shot dead in ferguson, missouri some 1800 miles away 25-year-old ezell ford a mentally ill man well-known and well liked in the community was walking in this tough south los angeles neighborhood he called home. what's clear is, two veteran officers approached him and that sometime after they caught up to him, ford was killed. everything else is in dispute. the l.a.p.d. declined our

request for an on camera interview but they spoke with al jazeera america by phone. saying after the officers tried speak to ford he continued walking. and made suspicious movements. including attempting to conceal his hands. when officers got closer and attempted to stop ford, ford turned, grabbed one of the officers. during the struggle, they fell to the ground and ford attempted to remove the officer's handgun from its holster. police say the other officer fired his handgun and the officer on the ground fired his backup weapon. neighbors dliemg have witnessed the -- claiming to have witnessed the shooting offered vastly different account. >> two seconds went by another shot went off, the officer told him to shoot him been. >> these officers sometimes have a 10th or a hundred theth or

a thousandth of a second. it can't be mental it's got to be intuitive. >> wishes body cameras were on every police officer's lapel. but despite recommendations over the past 20 years the police commission was able to secure private funding only last year. lapel cameras have been in the trial phase since january and many l.a.p.d. officers don't have them. >> this would be first of all a lot of problems wouldn't even happen, wouldn't even escalate but second of all, would -- everybody here would love to know the truth, with a capital t, the truth sets you are free. >> reporter: it's unclear exactly why the police approached ford that night. but the l.a.p.d. said the officers were conducting what they call a letting investigative stop. >> what's that? what's an investigative stop?

>> political analyst earl hutchinson has been an outspoken advocate in the l.a. african american community. >> is there a suspicion he broke into a liquor store, a car stolen, drugs department on the corn threr, you follow what i'm going here? if there's crime, that's typically why you stop people. >> a spattering of protesters gathering dam daly, on the corner where ford was killed. expwhritkilled. >> it's a prop. >> the day before ford was shot, he and a few friends had a laugh at an officer who dropped his clip. >> i don't know his exact words but he threatened to hurt him.

everyone knows ezell struggles with mental problems. the cops tackled him and there are people in the community who heard the cops shoot him. it was three shots they heard and they were not three quick shots in succession. two shots and a because and another shot or a shot and two shots after. >> which suggests? >> which suggests that the cops whatever last shot or last two shots were intentional to kill him. >> reporter: residents of this south l.a. neighborhood say ezell ford's death is too frequent and too senseless. the discrepancies of events just increased the mistrust the community feels is always simmering right below the surface. just moments after we arrived in

ford'ford's neighborhood, stepsm where he was killed, l.a.p.d. officers chased down a suspect. >> on the ground! >> dodged shoot owners -- don't shoot! >> at one point he appears to be reaching for officer's gun. neighbors are jeering at the officers. the lines are drawn. we don't know why the man was arrested but each moment is an expectant one. high tension is for long minutes. and it is eeriely suspicious. town hall meeting this week. as l.a.p.d. chief charlie beck

faced a gauntless of community members, many of whom who claim the l.a.p.d. unfairly target their men. >> i came here tonight because i respect the people in the room. i hope you respect me. if we treat each other that way and we treat this investigation that way, and we treat where we live and work that way, then we can report from this. >> there's always been down through years not only the suspicion but the charge that police do two things, they overpolice in african american communities and they overprosecute young african american males. so now you have michael brown in ferguson. you have ezell ford in los angeles. a few weeks ago you had eric garner is choke hold in new york city. so things are coming together all at the same time. and people are asking, is there

a war? is there a targeting against young african american males especially and they be occasionally females, too. >> why aren't we seeing the same reaction here in los angeles to mr. ford's death? >> here in l.a. you have a number of civil rights organization he. as soon as something happens, they're out there press conferences, having marches and demonstrations. there is an instant reaction here. people have a reaction here. in ferguson it is like wild west, we have nothing. >> lessons have been taken to heart since the l.a. riots sparked by rodney king's beating 20 years ago. but relations have not completely healed between the l.a.p.d. and the community ofeef

ezell ford's, all of which was on full display at the two hour long town hall meeting last night. if that gathering was an example of anything, the edges were very frayed joie. there were cat calls and collective groans every time charlie beck gave answers they didn't like, or withheld the identity of the officers involved in ford's shooting. but to get to to know the people whose neighborhood they patrol so that residents feel a little bit more like their parents were not subject of occupation, joie. >> that is michael okwu in los angeles. we'll be back with more "america tonight" after the break. fter the break.

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introducing the xfinity my account app. >> saturday on "tech know". >> i cannot imagine being trapped in ruble like this. >> a miraculous new invention. >> this if finder... it's a victim detection radar. >> that could save your life. >> as long as your heart is beating, we can detect you. >> "tech know". every saturday, go where science meets humanity. >> this is some of the best driving i've ever done... even though i can't see! >> "tech know". >> we're here in the vortex. >> saturday, 7:30 eastern. only on al jazeera america. >> more from the streets of ferguson, missouri, in a minute. now a snapshot of stories. bank of america reached an

unprecedented $17 billion settlement in its role in mortgage backed securities. leading to the financial amendment down. several mudslides devastated hihiroshima today. military personnel have been sent to help with rescue efforts. now to the crisis of ukraine, where fighting rages on the in the eastern parts of the country. 34 civilians and 9 ukrainian soldiers were killed. soldiers fighting to take back donetske. sr. pentagon officials flounced that earlier, a bid to rescue americans held by the

islamic state, the rescue mission failed as the hostages were not at the location. the murder of james foley condemned by president obama. reporting on syria's civil war from inside rebel territory. he was on his way out of the country at thanksgiving in 2012 when he was abducted. yesterday, when his murder it had become clear that he had come into the hands of islamic state. president obama was blunt in his condemnation. >> they have ram paged against cities and villages, killing unarmed singles in cowardly acts of violence. they abduct women and children and subject them to torture and rape and slavery. they have murdered muslims, both sunni and shia, by the

thousands. >> islamic state, i.s. now controls a swath of territory through syria, consolidating a hold on its territory, and since june, stretching well into iraq, threatening baghdad. pushing kurdish peshmerga forces back, causing thousands to flee their homes. people unable to escape were ordered to convert or die. the reports of atrocities committed by i.s. fighters are truly shocking. >> they took a lot of women, they killed the pedds. >> they ordered the execution of james foley and warned that another american journalist would die if the american strikes continued.

14 strikes today alone, destroying armored vehicles and in recent days helping the kurds at least partially retake a key dam. but the islamic state does not want for recruits. this soft-sell soft-focused video showing british recruits and trying to bringing on more. >> answer a allah. >> one people that these people believe and that motivates those recruits is this myth that they've succeeded in damaging the west. they haven't. they've succeeded in damaging the people they pretend to champion. they cause repliesary in the muslim world. >> still, western governments including the u.s. believe hundreds of their citizens have joined up.

500 from britain alone. >> it's not just british nationals it is americans french germans australians, from other countries, this is an international problem that the international community has to face. >> reporter: with intelligence agencies convinced that james foley's murderer is british probably from london, the british prime minister cut short his vacation. the fear in washington and other capitols is islamic state made a deliberate choice. an english speaking killer with a message the group wants to have resonate across the west. islamic state fighters are known to have a number of other westerners, journalists and aid workers, as captives, including at least one other american. the special forces operation earlier this summer was carried out in eastern syria. a white house statement says, the u.s. government had what we believed was sufficient intelligence and when the

opportunity presented itself the president authorized the department of defense to move aggressively to recover our citizens. unfortunately the mission was not successful because the hostages were not present. staying in the middle east, explosions and sirens again filling air in gaza, renewed fightings came after rockets were fired on tuesday. since then more than 200 rockets have been fired into southern israel and in response more than 100 israel air strikes on gaza followed. more than 20 people have been killed including the wife and infant son of hamas military chief mohamed daif. refuted reports that the leader was also killed in that strike on gaza. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu said the force would

continue until the rocket fire ends. focusing on ben gurion airport on thursday, warning international flights divert. we're joined by al jazeera correspondent nick schifrin in jerusalem. targeting ben gurian airport, to stay away. do you think they have the capacity to do that or is this as it was in the past an empty threat? >> well, we've seen rockets land very close to the airport in the past, sheila and the airport has been evacuated before, and this led the faa to ban flights for about a day. they certainly have the range on those rockets. they don't really have the capacity to aim at the airport though. none of the rockets have the technology that would allow them

to actually know exactly where they're going to do but it was part of new alanguage delivered with free threats, not only at the airport but also anyone here in jerm, gathering at stadiums, as well as along the gaza border, the threat was that they should remain in their shelters and away from the gaza border. >> this is been a very intense 24 hours where we've seen hundreds of rockets from gaza and israeli bombardment of gaza. how is this going to get both sides back to the bargaining table and how quickly could that happen? >> well, it's not going oget both sides back to the bargaining table. both sides are dug in. the violence is going to increase the casualties especially in gaza. a senior official tells me perhaps by next week, his prediction is that both sides will return to the bargaining table and actually speak about how to end this conflict. right now those talks are dead.

the rhetoric from netanyahu and from hamas they are digging in even deeper and vowing to keep fighting which of course means that at least for a day or two they will keep fighting and the talks will remain really pushed off until next week. >> here's hoping the talks do begin. from jerusalem, nick schifrin, thank you. after months of denial hamas is now taking credit for kidnapping and murder of the three israeli teens that sparked the latest conflict. tensions could not be higher in gaza. we hope to go back to ferguson, missouri, florison street, clashes between protesters and the police after the break. break.

>> welcome back to our coverage at the command center. as you have noted, we will have a little change in our coverage. due to the storms moving through. that may have an impact on what demonstrators will be able to accomplish tonight. that characteristic of so much of what has raised concern. earlier there was an encounter caught on video that represented some of that. a clash between a local law

enforcement officer, not from ferguson, but from a neighboring community, who appeared before a protester with his assault rifle drawn. let's listen. >> my hands are up bro, my hands are up. >> raise and point it. >> (bleep). >> hands up (bleep). >> you're going okill him. >> get back. >> what's your name sir (bleep)? >> your (bleep) don't (bleep) yourself, hello officer (bleep) yourself. >> that took place earlier in the day and we're already told that the local law enforcement has suspended that officer you saw and heard some of the clash there, that took place. these kinds of exchanges have been repeated in other ways throughout the area over these last 11 days. one of the groups monitoring the situation here is human rights

watch, and joining us from that organization is al bba morales. you have received reports from the community about other clashes, other intimidation. >> we are here investigating the police response to these situations, i'm not surprised, i've heard residents telling me about these interactions with police officers. >> is this the result of people refusing for example law enforcement orders, trying to conflict with the law, trying to create their own situation, is that what's going on? >> people have given me examples of trying as best they can to comply with police orders and being unable to. i spoke to a journalist who actually had odd y audio of pole

ordering people to disperse, and two seconds later, an attack. police said no you can't go there way so they went back into the dead end street, they were tear gassed, trying to comply with the order. it's not limited to the protesters who are actively clark with police. >> captain johnson has said there are times when demonstrators mean to create more unrest will hide behind the journalists. >> he was in with a regular crowd of protesters, he was not in the media pen. he was in the regular crowd of protesters. he was a freelancer. we are concerned with the peaceful protesters who are trying to comply and the reports we are hearing from people their willingness to comply with the orders isn't protecting them from the use of tear gas from having the guns drawn on them and that raises a lot of serious is concerns.

>> what will happen, what can you do to change the situation and the relationship there? >> well, we've already been reporting on some of what we have been hearing from folks here and we're going to need to take a deeper look at what local and state laws can be made, on the federal level, holder was here and we have specific suggestions. he can compile more robust data, there is a federal law that compels attorney generals to collect this information, we don't have any reliable data there is the unracial profiling act. that can go a long way to. >> alba morales, thank you for being with us and dealing with the stormy situation. on west florison where all the

protests have been concentrated, about a half mile stretch, very close to the pla place where mil brown died. al jazeera's robert ray has been watching while tonight's demonstrations, have been occurring. they have been quieted by the weather? >> you know they were. it came down pretty hard, it's missing rain now. they took shelter and about 300 yards from me 100 or so protesters, they come up and down the street here every five or ten minutes. michael brown was killed about two tbloks from here, right down there. -- blocks from here. one person arrested about a half hour ago. before the rains started. these protesters, for how small the groups they are very, very loud. we'll stay out in the weather and see how long they continue

to voice their opinions asking for justice for the death of michael brown, joie. >> robert is there any way to put people into shelter or some situation where they might be better protected given weather? >> not really. i mean, everyone kind of ducked into underneath the mcdonald's down the street. there's a couple other hangovers over some of the boarded up stores. there is a gas station right over there but it would be hard for them to even get over there because of the road blockade. so there's not a whole lot of place for them to take shelter. some of them have umbrellas when and that's not safe when there is lightning booming, i can hear them coming about 200 yards away now, joie. >> al jazeera correspondent robert ray for us on west florison. now rejoining me is our

colleague tony harris. we have seen a big shift. reminds me of the night and day situation we see in the protests. suddenly a lovely evening of weather and then suddenly this. >> i heard you meanings moment ago, this could be a bit of a break it was torrential rain that we saw. >> and captain johnson was talking about a turning point. >> he was talk about it at 2:30 this morning. what he was referring to is something different, something we really hadn't seen before. and this was a scene where clergy elders in the community activists in the community were actually working to keep the temperature down on the protests. the places where things were starting to heat up and flare up, eld ders in the community -- emders in the community, the police moved in, there were arrests last night but it was a

much calmer night relatively speaking than the night before. >> quick thought here tony. part of this, late yesterday afternoon, law enforcement did move most of the media, up here away from the crowds. now i'm not suggesting that we instigate but the presence of the media has changed. >> absolutely. there is a sense and maybe this is part of the calculation by the police and the missouri highway patrol that it was time to move the media and as least decrease the media presence in that particular area in west florison avenue. if you can follow the train of thought, the sign post that the media is here that there's a camp here that we've descended on this community that some of the people stirring up trouble just to get on television, that maybe this would discourage them, if there was less of a presence, a media presence and they moved us, a number of us up here to this command center and maybe that was a contributing

factor in addition to the activists and elders and part of the community. >> and now this being echoed with the weather. perhaps when law enforcement cannot succeed, perhaps mother nature will. tony harris. we will take a break from special coverage, when we return we'll hear from the voices on west floorison avenue. might be known to you as a war zone. silt the most dangerous block in america? stand by for the answers after this. this.

>> hundreds of days in detention. >> al jazeera rejects all the charges and demands immediate release. >> thousands calling for their freedom. >> it's a clear violation of their human rights. >> we have strongly urged the government to release those journalists. >> journalism is not a crime. is a. >> welcome back to our continuing coverage, special coverage at this hour from al jazeera america and "america tonight." as we look at flash point ferguson and the way forward. at this hour we stop to consider what has brought this last 11 days on a street that you've never heard of in these past 111

days, west florison avenue, they call it the street around here but despite what you've heard the language that this is a war zone that this is the most dangerous block in america to the folks who live and work here, this is home. the sounds of this city block have been by terms angered and anxious. nights full of shouts and smoke. each daylight bringing new signs of getting back to normal. but behind the now board hed up store fronts, questions about what the next news might bring. folks like buffy blanchard at the clip appeal, doesn't even recognize west florison, the

street she sees night after night on television. >> it becomes a different neighborhood. one that you can't even fathom by being here and living in this neighborhood, you're like what is really going on, you know? >> the trouble on this block she says is mostly caused by outsiders, local demonstrators respected the businesses here. >> every night i sit at home and watch the news i slip from channel to channel to channel, i fall sleep and wake up and it's still on and i think what's going ot in neighborhood now? directly looking at our shop. and i'm like if those windows get busted today it would get looted today, let's knock on wood, we've been very lucky. >> the daytime demonstrations she tells me are no problem. they're just out to make a point. but it's the age are of the night and the police response, buffy says that makes her block a frightening place to be.

>> the armored trucks with the assault rifles being pointed directly at me and i'm like i was trying to move out of the way, i don't want them to accidentally get me. it was scary, it really was, that first week. >> that's echoed on the street where even in the daytime calm the police are present and visible. and the community senses an attempt to intimidate. >> this is the most dangerous block in america. >> yes, right now, it is. it is. and i don't know who is more dangerous. is it the bad cops or the citizens? >> yvonne collins tells me the neighbors do want the police to make them feel safe again but the fear and mistrust have grown so great, finding a way back to community will be tough. >> their problem is, they will start believing in good cops again when they start turning in the bad ones. but you won't see that, the

police department in ferguson has been a problem for years. it opened up another can of rooms, ferguson is the most feared police department. they harass people they follow people for no reason. so most citizens including myself are used to that treatment. i'm used to driving my car and being followed. >> just because why? >> just because they want to. >> just because why? >> we have no idea. i feel it's because of my color. >> that you're followed? >> yes, ma'am, i feel because i'm aan african american. >> as we hear more and more on west florison how long can this go on? can the demonstrators keep coming pushing forward on the street, account police keep pushing back, account media keep the focus on what's happening on this half mile stretch? how long can a protester, even

one protected by faith, believe west florison will ever be a stretch of roadway again, no longer the intersection of the battle between a community and its cops? >> we're going through -- >> and certainly a lot of conflicting feelings out on west florison avenue those are the people that have sympathy for the protesters, who understand the situation and clearly part of the community themselves but who are concerned about their businesses and their lively livs and lives going forward. sheila macvicar, a opportunity to change the dynamic for any demonstrations that take place tonight. >> obviously any demonstrations

that take place tonight. i'm struck by that young woman in your piece joie who talked about the deeper mall as i in the community, the fear and mistrust that people are being profiled because of what they are not what they're doing. and the question is of course how do you move forward? did the attorney general offer the kinds of concrete solutions that those people in that community want to hear and need to have? >> yes, sheila, i think that this is very true. i think this is a very complicated situation that has evolved over decades. a lot of the people who live particularly into ferguson have moved from a community called kinlock, it is an area that's been completely cleared out. all these people were forced to move into another community and that is how the dynamics of ferguson and this part of north county changed so dramatically. the demographic difference

happened so quickly. so you see there the environment has not caught up. and part of what people complain of is members of the community have not been politically active enough leading up to this situation. that woman in the piece said it answered her prayers to get. >> an important lesson for all of us. thanks joie. look forward to seeing you again in ferguson, missouri. >> thanks very much. we'll continue our coverage from here. thanks for joining us for "america tonight." are generation now... >> so many of my friends is pregnant... >> i feel so utterly alone... >> you need to get your life together >> i'm gonna do whatever needs to be done... >> ya boy is working on becoming a millionaire... >> an intimate look at what our kids are facing in school

and beyond 15 stories, 1 incredible journey >> in this envelope is my life right now... >> edge of eighteen only on al jazeera america a a [ shots fired ] >> clashes on the streets of missouri. why was a black teenager shot to death by police? crisis of confidence. still so many unanswered questions.