At least 25 law-enforcement officers and two journalists suffered minor injuries when a crowd gathered to protest the fatal shooting of a young black man by U.S. Marshals erupted in violence Wednesday night. The victim, identified by a county commissioner as Brandon Webber, 21, was wanted on several felony charges and was killed when officers from the U.S. Marshals Fugutive Task Force tried to apprehend him. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Public Information Officer Keli McAlister said the man got out of his vehicle with a weapon during an arrest, NBC News reports. “The officers fired, striking and killing the individual,” McAlister said at a press conference. Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland condemned the protesters and appealed for calm in the city after a number of police vehicles were vandalized during the protest. “Let me be clear: The aggression shown toward our officers and deputies tonight was unwarranted.” The Commercial Appeal reports tensions rose with the gathered Frayser neighborhood crowd when residents said they observed police officers laughing and taunting members of the community after the shooting.
