‘Witness 40’ for Ferguson grand jury exposed as a racist, mentally ill felon who lied about shooting: report
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nationa ... -1.2047404
The key witness, who described Michael Brown charging 'like a football player' at Officer Darren Wilson in the moments before the fatal Aug. 9 shooting, has been named as Sandra McElroy, a 45-year-old St. Louis woman and Wilson supporter who likely was not even in Ferguson the day of the shooting. The Smoking Gun report found McElroy, who once lied to police in another high-profile St. Louis case, has a history of racist rants online and was convicted of felony check fraud.
A mentally ill woman who used the N-word to describe blacks and previously lied to police about witnessing a high-profile crime was allowed to act as “Witness 40” for the Ferguson grand jury, even though she likely was not there and was a known, outspoken backer of Officer Darren Wilson, according to reports.
Convicted felon Sandra McElroy, 45, didn’t give police a witness statement about the Aug. 9 killing of unarmed black teen Michael Brown until Sept. 11, well after several descriptions of the shooting had been detailed in the press, an investigation by The Smoking Gun found. And her now oft-cited account, that Brown charged at a defenseless Wilson “like a football player,” follows much of what Wilson told investigators about that day.
But her stories, given to local and federal authorities and presented over two different days to the 12-person grand jury, are conflicting and filled with bizarre twists and details that make it likely she didn’t even witness the shooting. Instead, according to The Smoking Gun, she likely sought to cast herself as a key player in the contentious story that ended with riots in Ferguson and protests around the world after the grand jury failed to indict Wilson in the killing.
“I know what I seen,” she told federal investigators at one point. “I know you don’t believe me.”
The report has given new hope to the team representing Brown’s family, the Rev. Al Sharpton told the Daily News on Tuesday, because it “shows (the grand jury) was not a fair process. There was questionable testimony.”
Lawyers for the Brown family are reviewing the testimony and new details, Sharpton said, and will forward any findings to the federal justice department, which is reviewing the case for possible civil rights violations.
During a press conference later, O'Mara was asked if he had any advice for Zimmerman, and he answered, "Pay me."
