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Moment or Movement? Governor Praises Brown Investigation, Activists Want Change

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon said he has confidence that the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney will be impartial, but MSNBC's Al Sharpton disagreed.
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While Ferguson, Missouri has been relatively calm in recent days, supporters of Michael Brown are looking toward what they have been calling for since the teen was shot by a police officer: a thorough and fair investigation and institutional change.

The people of Ferguson want to be guaranteed that "what has happened in the past two weeks is not swept under the rug," said Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon on NBC's "Meet the Press." He said he is confident that dual investigations — one by county police and one on the federal level — will ensure that calls for justice will be answered. Nixon defended his decision not to remove St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert P. McCulloch from the case, saying "he was elected overwhelmingly by the people a number of times."

Activist and MSNBC host Al Sharpton disagreed. "Justice is a fair and impartial investigation," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press," adding, "too often with local prosecutors, we don’t get that.

"We must turn this moment into a movement," said Sharpton. "Our chants must lead to real change."

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— Elisha Fieldstadt