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Published January 25, 2017
This is a rush transcript from "On the Record," August 19, 2014. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: Today, the grizzly investigative news. A third autopsy on the body of Michael Brown completed, now this one by the Department Of Justice. Yesterday, a pathologist Michael Baden who performed earlier autopsy at the Brown family's request said the 18-year-old was shot at least six times including twice in the head.
And the Brown's family lawyer Ben Crump joins us. Good evening, sir.
BENJAMIN CRUMP, ATTORNEY FOR MICHAEL BROWN'S FAMILY: Good evening.
VAN SUSTEREN: It's nice to have you back, sir. We have spoken before.
CRUMP: Yes, ma'am, thank you for having me.
VAN SUSTEREN: We understand that this, sort of, a personal note that the funeral has been set for Monday, is that right?
CRUMP: Yes, ma'am.
VAN SUSTEREN: Any idea funeral plan would be closed to the public who will be eulogizing Michael Brown, anything like that.
CRUMP: The family is still going through that process, Greta. So, as soon as they make their final decisions, we will let y'all know.
VAN SUSTEREN: All right. You know, I can't even imagine what it's like for the parents. Is there -- you know, is there anything that you can say to them at this point? I mean, this is -- you know, as we've been watching what's been unfolding, they've lost a son and now we have all this violence out in Ferguson.
CRUMP: Yes, ma'am. They are very troubled by the violence. They have asked that people act responsibly and not do anything other than what's within the law. All the violence, they don't think at all that's what their objective is. And that is to get answers and get justice for their child being killed in broad daylight.
VAN SUSTEREN: What do you think Attorney General Eric Holder will accomplish going to Ferguson tomorrow.
CRUMP: You know, one of the things, Greta, and I think the people of Ferguson have a great distrust with the local St. Louis authorities. And so, looking at the federal government saying that we are going to ensure that it's going to be a fair and transparent process hopefully will give them some sense of confidence to where they won't feel Michael Brown's death will be swept under the rug. I think that is the greatest concern for a lot of the protesters that they've seen this happen before, where police officers kill young people of color and nobody knows what the process is, they come out and says justify and it's over.
And in this matter with Michael Brown Jr., I think, because it was out in broad daylight, because you have so many witnesses, and because he was shot multiple times. People feel very passionate about it. And the most troubling thing, I think, Greta, is for over four hours his body was laying on the concrete so by the time they finally did move him, not only was his mother and father there trying to get pass the police lines to get him but everybody, they had 100 people out there watching saying this is not right. And so, the community kept getting more passionate.
VAN SUSTEREN: Mr. Crump, I have not spoken to all the eyewitnesses and they will all be testifying behind closed doors in a grand jury proceeding as you and I both know being lawyers. And so, I don't know -- you know, I don't know what -- you know, what kind of evidence they're going to hear, but in the event that they conclude that this was not -- you know, that this was, for instance, an accidental shooting or not a murder, can your clients accept that if that happened? I mean, I have no idea how the facts are going to unfold. I know they got shot six times. That's horrible. I got that but, I don't know what the witnesses will say happened on the street.
CRUMP: You know, Greta, I think the clients want to see a process that is transparent, Grand juries are a secret proceeding, as you and I know as lawyers. And that is troubling because if they don't know what was told to grand jury, what was presented to grand jury. I think the people in Ferguson are going to be troubled by it. That's why they asked them for federal intervention, somebody who they feel can be objective, who didn't work with police officer who was the shooter and people who they think have no connections to the Ferguson police department or the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office, because these people have lived in this community for years. And this isn't the first police shooting of a young African-American that have had a lot of controversy surrounding it.
VAN SUSTEREN: I think for me as a bystander what's going to be very significant is when we see whether or not the clothes had any evidence of gunpowder residue which might suggest a closer shooting than a more distant one. Do you have any information about when, you know, when the clothing that Michael's wearing whether there was any indication there was gunpowder residue on it?
CRUMP: We don't, Greta. But as you know, Dr. Baden, the pathologist that is working on the family's behalf did the autopsy for the family, he has talked to the St. Louis county medical examiner and requested that that information as well as the X-rays to see what bullets were taken out of his body where casings were found at or near where tragic shooting took place but also whether there was any evidence in the police car of any kind of blood or evidence that would help us tell the whole story. Dr. Baden had said that the autopsy is only one part of the story.
But what you really need is to have all of the witness statements, all of the gunshot residue evidence, everything, so we can look at it very objectively and say, it is likely what the witnesses said happened or is it likely what the police officers said happened? And that's what we hope to get to. But if it's a grand jury proceeding that's closed, nobody in the community gets to hear that. And I think that's a problem for this community.
VAN SUSTEREN: And I agree. Both sides of this, you know, this, you know, this current issue, people made up their minds and haven't had the facts develop. And, you know, I don't know, I mean, the grand jury's always is a secret and I get around it. But that's only I agree, they creates an issue. And I thank you for joining us tonight, sir. And I hope you'll come back.
CRUMP: Thank you so much for having me.
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