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CRIME

Defense attorney for Ferguson suspect says officers were shot 'accidentally'

Associated Press
Published | Updated
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    Pro-police demonstrators protest outside the Ferguson Police Department Sunday, March 15, 2015, in Ferguson, Mo. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) (The Associated Press)

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    Pro-police demonstrators wave to passing cars as they stand outside the Ferguson Police Department Sunday, March 15, 2015, in Ferguson, Mo. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) (The Associated Press)

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    About 100 pro-police demonstrators stand hold signs outside the Ferguson Police Department as the shadows of counter demonstrators are seen on the street Sunday, March 15, 2015, in Ferguson, Mo. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) (The Associated Press)

CLAYTON, Mo. – A defense attorney says a man accused of shooting two officers last week in Ferguson was not targeting police or aiming at demonstrators at a late-night protest.

Defense attorney Jerryl Christmas also suggested Monday that St. Louis County police may have used excessive force when arresting Jeffrey Williams. Christmas says his client had bruises on his back, shoulders and face and a knot on his head.

Police spokesman Brian Schellman called the lawyer's allegations "completely false."

Williams is accused of shooting the two officers early Thursday outside Ferguson's police station, which has been the scene of protests since last summer's fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

Christmas countered an earlier police description of the crime, saying it wasn't an ambush shooting.