According to FPD records, at about 11:53 a.m., a dispatcher called out a "stealing in progress" at the address of Ferguson Market while Wilson was in the midst of a sick infant call. During his interview with federal officials, Wilson told prosecutors and agents that he heard the call on his portable radio, but did not hear the specifics about the location of the "stealing in progress." He also stated that he heard that one of the suspects was wearing a "black shirt," that they had stolen cigarillos, and were going toward the Quick-Trip. The actual description given was that of a "black male in a white t-shirt," "running toward the Quick-Trip," and that "he took a whole box of Swisher cigars." Two officers, Witness 145 and Witness 146, the same two FPD officers who first responded to Canfield Drive after the shooting, responded to the Ferguson Market. At approximately 11:56 a.m., Witness 145, via radio, added, "He's with another male. He's got a red Cardinals hat, white t-shirt, yellow socks, and khaki shorts."
Wilson left the sick call at approximately 11:58 a.m., after EMS arrived to transport the mother and sick child to the hospital. Twenty-seven seconds later, Wilson radioed to Witness 145 and Witness 146, "Do you guys need me?," corroborating that Wilson was aware of the theft at Ferguson Market prior to his encounter with Brown. Witness 145 responded that the suspect "disappeared into the woodwork." Wilson, having not heard him, asked the dispatcher to "relay." The dispatcher then clarified, "He thinks that they...disappeared." Wilson then said "clear," indicating that he understood.
Wilson drove his police SUV west on Canfield Drive, where he encountered Brown and Witness 101 walking east in the middle of the street. Wilson's last recorded radio transmission occurred at approximately noon when he called out, "Put me on Canfield with two and send me another car," consistent with Wilson's account that he radioed for backup once he interacted with Brown and Witness 101.
Several radio transmissions followed from dispatch and from Officer 145 seeking a response from Wilson to no avail. About one minute and forty seconds following Wilson's last transmission, Witness 145 called out to send the supervising sergeant to Canfield Drive and Copper Creek Court, the location of the shooting incident. There were no recorded radio transmissions from Wilson from the time Wilson called for assistance to the time that Witness 145 called for a supervisor.
As noted above, Wilson stated that he also radioed for backup after the initial shots when Brown ran from the SUV, and then again after he shot Brown to death. According to Wilson, as he left the shooting scene, he realized that his radio must have switched from channel 1, which he had been using, to channel 3 during the initial struggle. Channel 3 is a dedicated channel for the North County Fire Department. It only receives transmissions, and therefore, officers cannot use that channel to transmit messages to dispatch. While this is not definitive evidence that Wilson attempted to call for assistance both after the initial shots in the SUV and after he killed Brown, it offers a plausible explanation for the lack of radio transmissions. Moreover, as detailed below, there are several witnesses who state that Wilson paused in the SUV after Brown took off running, arguably giving him enough time to attempt to radio dispatch. Likewise, several witnesses saw Wilson appear to use his shoulder microphone after Brown fell to the ground, presumably to radio dispatch.
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