A Case That is Still an Enigma

In Wilson's telling, after a confrontation about walking on the street rather that the sidewalk, Brown effectively trapped the officer in his own cruiser, punching him through the open window. "When I grabbed him, the only way I can describe it is I felt like a 5-year-old holding on to Hulk Hogan," Wilson testified. Brown, he said, looked "like a demon."

Wilson pulled the trigger twice in the car. Then, Brown fled and Wilson chased him. When Brown turned and started coming at him, Wilson testified, he ordered him to stop and then shot: "At this point, it looked like he was almost bulking up to run through the shots, like it was making him mad that I'm shooting at him."

Johnson's account presented Wilson, not Brown, as the aggressor. He said that he never saw Brown punch the officer or grab his gun, but those assertions are contradicted by the physical evidence, of Wilson's injuries and Brown's DNA on the weapon. In the final moments, Johnson said Brown told the officer he did not have a gun but Wilson shot him repeatedly.

Eyewitness testimony, notoriously unreliable, supports both versions, particularly on the crucial question of what happened after Wilson got out of the car. "I'm seeing him [Brown] coming at an aggressive speed and just in charge mode toward the police officer," one witness testified. Said another, "He stopped running and when he stopped running the police officer stopped firing. And, then Mr. Brown continued, started again to charge towards him."

Others saw the encounter in a light more favorable to Brown. One witness said Brown wasn't charging or even walking toward Wilson and had his palms facing the officer. Brown, said another "was kinda hunched ... with his hands up, like ... 'I'm givin up' stage."

In short, this case has been a mess, and remains a tragedy. It's much more complicated to call it a crime -- even more complicated to prove it so.

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Ruth Marcus' email address is ruthmarcus@washpost.com.