Nixon also declared a state of emergency in August and put the Missouri State Highway Patrol in charge of a unified local police command. Eventually, Nixon activated the National Guard to provide security around the command center.
This time, Nixon said the St. Louis County Police Department would be in charge of a security in Ferguson and would work with the Highway Patrol and St. Louis city police as part of a unified command to “protect civil rights and ensure public safety” in other jurisdictions.
The governor did not indicate how many National Guard troops would be mobilized, instead leaving it to the state adjutant general to determine. Nixon said the National Guard would be available to carry out any requests made through the Highway Patrol to “protect life and property” and support local authorities. If the Guard is able to provide security at police and fire stations, then more police officers may be freed up to patrol the community, Nixon said.
St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said Monday that he supports Nixon’s decision to activate the Guard. He said the Guard “will be used in a secondary role” and could potentially be stationed at places such as shopping centers and government buildings.
“The way we view this, the Guard is not going to be confronting the protesters and will not be on (the) front line interacting directly with demonstrators,” Slay said.
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Associated Press writer Summer Ballentine contributed to this report.
Article Appeared @http://news.yahoo.com/missouri-governor-activates-national-guard-201522300.html