Ferguson grand jury documents support earlier data

Additional grand jury information released Monday night in the death of Michael Brown is consistent with data that had previously been made available in the case, and consistent with testimony that was released after the decision was announced that Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson would not be indicted.

Results of a Defense Department autopsy performed on Michael Brown at the request of the Justice Department confirmed what previous autopsies -- one by the St. Louis County medical examiner and another at the request of Brown's family -- had shown. Brown's death was caused by multiple gunshot wounds to the skull, brain and chest, according to the report.

But the autopsy also looked at gunshot wounds to the hand and through "microscopic examinations" showed a "strong likelihood of the presence of soot" which would be an indication of a close range discharge of a firearm. Also Brown's blood was found on both sides of both his hands, and on the inside of Wilson's vehicle's door, which would be consistent with Wilson's testimony that a struggle between the two ensued at the vehicle, resulting in the officer discharging his firearm.

According to Wilson's and other testimonies, the unarmed Brown was shot again after he tried to flee from the scene. Wilson testiified he fired his weapon when Brown tried to charge at him. But others say he was fatally wounded as he held his hands up in surrender.

In all, eight bullet wounds were found in Brown's body, but it is unclear how many were re-entry wounds. "The gunshot wounds of the right chest may represent re-entry wounds from the exiting gunshot wounds to the right arm and/or the right forehead," the report says.

Other information in the grand jury testimony included a finding that blood was cleaned off Wilson's firearm before ballistics tests were conducted; a crime laboratory reported a 1.5 gram bag of marijuana was found on Brown's body the drug was found in his blood and urine; and Brown had multiple abrasions on his face hands and torso.

St. Louis County prosecutor Bob McCullough announced Monday that at least one testimony from the grand jury hearings had not been released with the other documents immediately after the grand jury decision. A police and FBI interview with Brown's friend Dorian Johnson had not been released, but McCullough had no explanation why it wasn't. Johnson testified that Wilson, not Brown was the aggressor in the conflict. The testimony was among many variations of witness accounts of the Aug. 9 shooting.