State of Emergency in Ferguson; Interview with Missouri State Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal
COSTELLO: The Missouri governor Jay Nixon says he hopes and expects peace will prevail after a grand jury decision in Ferguson comes down and that his state of emergency declaration is a precaution against potential unrest. But more than 100 days since that fatal encounter between unarmed teenager Michael Brown and Officer Darren Wilson, unease is growing in the Missouri town as that critical grand jury announcement could come any day now. CNN's Stephanie Elam live in Ferguson this morning. Good morning.</s>ELAM: Good morning, Carol. It does imply that we are probably getting closer to hearing what the grand jury has decided about the fate of Officer Darren Wilson, but some saying that the idea that the National Guard is going to be moved in here is actually just inciting stiffer relationships between police and protesters.</s>CROWD: Hands up, don't shoot.</s>ELAM (voice-over): Protesters in St. Louis braved frigid temperatures, taking to the streets, ahead of Missouri's governor declaring a state of emergency. Governor Jay Nixon anticipating expanded unrest if the grand jury decides not to indict Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson, who shot and killed unarmed teen, Michael Brown, on August 9th. Governor Nixon activating the National Guard to assist the county police with securing Ferguson, bypassing the Ferguson police department. The mayor of St. Louis agreed with the decision.</s>FRANCIS SLAY, MAYOR OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI: We don't know what's going to happen or when it's going to happen, or, you know, what the decision is going to be, or what the reaction is going to be. I think we need to make sure that we are prepared.</s>BENJAMIN CRUMP, ATTORNEY FOR MICHAEL BROWN'S FAMILY: Michael Brown's parents have asked that everybody who supports them do so in a nonviolent, peaceful constructive way.</s>ELAM: For more than three months now, this entire area has been on edge. (on camera): Are you worried about violence becoming an issue again?</s>MAX PETERSON, DEMONSTRATOR: I'm not really. By civilians or by police?</s>ELAM: Whatever concerns you.</s>PETERSON: I mean, the biggest concern is that something very small will happen, like a water bottle and that will lead to teargas or gunfire.</s>ELAM (voice-over): Last week, a law enforcement source says the FBI issued a bulletin to police across the nation, warning officers to be vigilant about possible violence related to Ferguson. Over the past few months, community leaders have complained that outsiders have instigated much of the violence. (on camera): So when the grand jury comes out with its decision, what do you think is going to happen?</s>LARRY FELLOWS III, DEMONSTRATOR: I honestly can't say. I can just speak about what we're going to continue to do as protesters until we get what we deserve, which is justice.</s>ELAM (on camera): Now the protesters telling me they plan to be out here no matter what the decision is from the grand jury. They're saying that this is an issue larger than just what happened with Mike Brown and that there needs to be reform in the way that that police interact with people of color in this country, Carol.</s>COSTELLO: All right, Stephanie Elam reporting live from Ferguson, Missouri, this morning. With me now, Maria Chappelle-Nadal, a Missouri state senator who represents Ferguson. Welcome.</s>STATE SEN. MARIA CHAPPELLE-NADAL (D), MISSOURI: Good morning. How are you, Carol?</s>COSTELLO: I'm good. Thank you so much for being with me. Governor Nixon has declared a state of emergency and has activated the National Guard. A good move in your mind?</s>CHAPPELLE-NADAL: Well, you know, I wish he paid attention to what was happening in Ferguson 102 days ago and I am a little bit concerned because he is indeed inciting the community I represent. In August, I sent a letter to the White House saying to the president, hey, listen, if we're going to have the National Guard, I trust the federal government to have authority over the National Guard rather than the state. Already the governor has had so many fumbles and we just can't afford any more of his mistakes.</s>COSTELLO: If the federal government is in charge of security, though, wouldn't that incite things further?</s>CHAPPELLE-NADAL: Well, the governor at every single chance he gets and every -- basically every time he opens his mouth, he's inciting the community that I represent. And so I do have more faith in the federal government under President Obama than I do my own Democratic governor. So, yes, if we had federal oversight over our National Guard, we'd be doing much better. And, frankly, my constituents agree. They do not want Governor Nixon to have the authority over the National Guard at this point because they simply do not trust him.</s>COSTELLO: Well, the governor is in a tight spot, as are local police agencies in the State of Missouri. There's this FBI bulletin out and frankly it's pretty scary when you read it. It says "law enforcement agencies across the country may be targeted by extremists who could be armed with bladed weapons, guns, gas masks, and bulletproof vests." So is it unreasonable that the governor is taking these steps in Ferguson?</s>CHAPPELLE-NADAL: That is not what our peaceful protests look like at all in Ferguson. The people who I have been lining up with side by side, we don't have guns or gas masks. It's the law enforcement that has all of that. And they're the ones who have --</s>COSTELLO: But there are outside agitators who come in. There was also a bulletin posted that -- it was online by a black separatist group. It offered a $5,000 bounty for the location of Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson. There are agitators that could be present in those protesters, and police have to be on guard.</s>CHAPPELLE-NADAL: Absolutely. So one of the things that we have done as protesters is to self-police. It's one of the fastest, easiest ways to get these outside agitators out. And we have been successful. When we learned that people were coming from out of the state to agitate, we started buckling down. We do not want violent people in our protests whatsoever. They are not welcome whatsoever. And we're going to continue to do self-policing in our crowds just to help out our law enforcement.</s>COSTELLO: Are you talking about making citizens arrests?</s>CHAPPELLE-NADAL: We've done that already. From day one we were doing that. When there were people who were saying things in the crowd that they should not have said, or have done things, we literally put hands around them and told them to leave. And if they came back, they would be escorted out by someone or some people So we've been doing self-policing for a while now. But we have to maintain that effort.</s>COSTELLO: Missouri state senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal, thank you so much for your insight this morning. I appreciate it.</s>CHAPPELLE-NADAL: Thank you so much, Carol.</s>COSTELLO: The news hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts now.