Lesley McSpadden allegedly led a group of 20 to 30 people to a tent in a parking lot in Ferguson, Mo. on Oct. 18 to beat and rob vendors selling ‘Justice for Michael Brown’ merchandise.
SUSAN WALSH/APAt left, Lesley McSpadden, mom of cop-shooting victim Michael Brown, is seen with the teen’s father, Michael Brown Sr. — whose mother is one of the alleged victims purportedly beaten by McSpadden and up to 30 others.The mother of Michael Brown could be charged with felony armed robbery for allegedly attacking people in a Ferguson, Mo., parking lot because they were selling T-shirts honoring the late teenager.
The Ferguson Police Department is currently investigating claims that Lesley McSpadden brought a group of people — including her own mother — to beat vendors and rob them of their “Justice for Mike Brown” merchandise Oct. 18,The Smoking Gun has learned.
According to the report, Pearlie Gordon, 54, and two men were selling “Justice for Mike Brown” merchandise on a Saturday afternoon when “a large group of about 20-30 subjects ‘jumped out of vehicles and rushed them.’” Gordon is the mother-in-law of Michael Brown Sr., McSpadden’s ex-husband.
Gordon told police that McSpadden, 34, approached her and said, “You can’t sell this shit.”
Gordon replied, according to the report, that “unless McSpadden could produce documentation stating that she had a patent on her son’s name she (Gordon) was going to continue to sell her merchandise.”
McSpadden’s mother, Desureia Harris, began to rip down t-shirts hanging on a line, Gordon told officers. Then, she added, other members of the group began “tearing her booth apart.” Gordon (seen at left) said that during the melee she was repeatedly struck in the head and knocked to the ground.
At one point, Gordon recalled, she heard McSpadden “yell to an unknown subject, ‘That’s Calvina’s mom, get her ass.” [Calvina is the first name of Michael Brown Sr.’s wife.] “McSpadden then ran up and punched Gordon,” according to the report.
Gordon’s male associates were also beaten–reportedly with a pipe–during the confrontation, and one of the men was transported by EMS workers to a local hospital for treatment of “injuries sustained during the assault.”
Gordon identified McSpadden (seen below), McSpadden’s spouse, Harris, and several others as the “attackers.” More than $1500 in merchandise and $400 in
cash “was stolen by unknown subjects” who fled before police arrived, the report notes.
A witness whose name was redacted from the report told cops that she watched the attack from her car while at a red signal. The woman said she saw several individuals enter the tent from opposite sides and begin “assaulting (punching) the vendors.”
The witness said that she began recording the incident and “would provide this department with a copy of the video via e-mail.” However, as cops noted, the witness had not provided the video or a witness statement at the time of the report’s preparation. (3 pages)
