( CNN ) -- One day after leading a peaceful procession of demonstrators along the streets of his native Ferguson , Missouri , State Highway Patrol Capt . Ron Johnson turned an outdoor news conference into an impromptu community forum . `` I 'm here to make sure they hear what I 'm talking about , '' Johnson , standing with Gov . Jay Nixon and others , told reporters Friday . He stepped away from the microphone and moved closer to members of a community still seething after Saturday 's racially-charged police shooting of an unarmed black teenager . `` Move in a little closer , '' he implored residents who had gathered behind reporters . `` Come in closer . '' For the man tapped Thursday to restore order in the restive St. Louis suburb where sometimes violent protests were met with a heavy-handed police response , the mission is personal . Demonstrations and confrontations with local police marked the night hours earlier this week , in the wake of a weekend police shooting by a white officer that left an 18-year-old African-American man dead . Michael Brown , who was unarmed , died in the Saturday shooting . Police say he was trying to grab the officer 's gun . Witnesses say Brown was holding his hands in the air when he was fatally shot . State troopers took over security after days of clashes between protesters and local police , who have been accused of using excessive force -- including rubber bullets and tear gas -- in response to the demonstrations . `` The people of our community need to hear what I 'm saying , '' Johnson told the crowd . `` They have questions . This is n't about Ron Johnson ... It is about the people that live in our community . '' On Thursday night , Johnson and other officials marched with the protesters and , in his words , they `` walked and shook hands and talked to people and listened and promised that we 're going to communicate better . '' `` Last night was a great night , '' he recalled on Friday . `` There were no calls for service . We did not deploy tear gas . We did not have road blocks . We did not make any arrests . It was a good night . People were talking . '' At Friday 's news conference , residents expressed skepticism on details released earlier by Ferguson 's police chief implicating Brown as the `` primary suspect '' in a convenience store robbery moments before he was killed . Johnson said he would brief residents about the claims after meeting with Police Chief Thomas Jackson . But he urged residents `` to make sure that we do n't burn down our own house , that we do n't go down there and vandalize our own buildings ... That does n't prove a point . That does not solve the issue . That hurts this community , and that 's what I do n't want . '' At one point in the news conference , a man who said he was the father of seven children talked about his kids being `` scared to death '' of the police . Johnson responded more like a pastor than a law enforcement officer : `` When I got home , my daughter said , 'Daddy , were you scared ? ' I said , 'Just a little . ' She said , 'Daddy , I want you to remember when Jesus asked Peter to walk with him in the water . When Peter got scared Jesus picked him up and said have faith . ' Today , we need to be just like Peter . '' On social media , people praised Johnson 's handling of the situation . `` Capt . Johnson . Inspiring . What an incredible night this is in # Ferguson , '' one person tweeted . Music impresario Russell Simmons tweeted : `` When police know the community and come from community , the relationship can be transformed overnight . Well done Capt . Johnson . # Ferguson '' When Johnson took over security in Ferguson Thursday , the suburb had become a flashpoint . `` A young man lost his life and so I grieve for that family because I have a son , '' he told CNN 's Jake Tapper . `` We 're going to look at this from a personal standpoint and if that was my son -- or that was my friend -- how would I feel ? '' Johnson grew up in the area and considers it both his community and his home . 5 things to know about Michael Brown 's shooting . Although locals say race relations have long been troubled between the city 's mostly African-American population and the mostly white police force , anger spilled out after Brown 's death . `` It means a lot to me , personally , that we break the cycle of violence , diffuse the tension and build trust -- showing the utmost respect for every interaction with every citizen , '' Johnson , who is African-American , told reporters . `` Moving forward , I 'm confident that the patrol and police resources present here in Ferguson will do just that . '' Johnson said he is committed to the new approach . He stressed the importance of not focusing on the past . `` We 're going to start from today . We 're not going to look back in the past , '' Johnson said . `` We are going to have a different approach and have the approach that we 're in this together . '' Complete coverage of Ferguson shooting and protests . A white man 's response to Ferguson . CNN 's Catherine E. Shoichet contributed to this report .
The man in charge of security in Ferguson walks with protesters . Missouri Highway Patrol Capt . Ron Johnson was arrested for the incident Thursday . ` ` I ' m here to make sure they know what I ' m talking about , '' Johnson says Friday . State police took over security in Ferguson after days of unrest .