Proposed Ferguson Police Oversight Board Criticized As Weak

There are still no arrests in the death of Michael Brown, the unarmed black youth who was shot and killed by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson last month.

The Ferguson City Council has called for a Citizens Oversight Board for the police department, but critics say that proposal is weak because the board wouldn't have the power to review citizen complaints.

"There's still a high level of frustration and anger," Antonio French, an alderman of St. Louis' 21st Ward, told Here & Now's Jeremy Hobson. French has been deeply involved with the events in Ferguson.

The protesters recently tried to shut down Interstate 70.

"The organizers of the [I-70] protest have been trying to direct that anger into more civil disobedience instead of things that could result in destruction or violence," French said. "They have said they will start escalating more and more acts of civil disobedience, until there is something done in that case, specifically an arrest and indictment of the officer who killed Michael Brown."

French says that while Ferguson has faded from national attention, it is still very present in the St. Louis area.

"The national attention span is very short, but here in St. Louis, this is still a big story," French said.