Lawyers for Michael Brown’s family appeal for calm in Ferguson

Attorneys for the family of Michael Brown Jr., the unarmed black teenager killed by a police officer this summer, are urging calm from both protesters and law enforcement as Ferguson, Mo., awaits a grand jury decision in the case.

A grand jury will decide whether to indict Darren Wilson, the officer who shot Brown. A decision is expected by the end of the month, and officials are bracing for protests.

{mosads}The attorneys urged protesters not to react violently to the grand jury’s decision.

“We feel that such acts cannot be tolerated,” said Anthony Gray, one of the family’s lawyers. “We want to make it clear on behalf of the Brown family we do not condone any acts of rioting, looting or violence.”

After the shooting in August, Ferguson was wracked by days of protests and a tough police crackdown, which garnered national attention.

The lawyers also directly addressed law enforcement officers, saying they also bore responsibility for the violence this summer.

“We would like to thank you in advance for not having a repeat of the horrific encounters that took place in August,” said Benjamin Crump, another attorney.

“There have been too many reports of excessive behavior and agitation by police officers, which have resulted in the outbursts of the kind that the governor described by otherwise peaceful demonstrators,” added Gray.

Gov. Jay Nixon (D) said Tuesday that he was prepared to deploy National Guard troops to maintain calm if Ferguson erupts.

The Brown family’s lawyers criticized Nixon for focusing much of his Tuesday press conference on demonstrators without expressing the same standards for police officers.

“Law enforcement should have been equally condemned for this conduct at the same time he was admonishing the demonstrators,” Gray said.

While many protested peacefully in Ferguson, Mo., after the shooting occurred, others stole from local businesses and clashed violently with police. Community leaders said some of those people were from outside the town and used the demonstrations as cover for their actions.

Police were also criticized for responding with military equipment and using tear gas to disperse protesters many said were largely peaceful.

The grand jurors are weighing conflicting accounts of the shooting. Some witnesses have said that Brown was fleeing or surrendering, when he was killed. Others have reportedly told the grand jury he grabbed for Wilson’s gun.

Dr. Michael Baden, who conducted a second autopsy on Brown’s body following his death, was speaking to the grand jury Thursday about his findings.