Federal authorities will conduct their own autopsy on the body of Michael Brown, the young man shot and killed in Ferguson, Mo., the Department of Justice announced Sunday.
“Due the to the extraordinary circumstances involved in this case and at the request of the Brown family, Attorney General Holder has instructed Justice Department officials to arrange for an additional autopsy to be performed by a federal medical examiner,” Justice Department spokesman Brian Fallon said in a statement posted by NBC News.
“This independent examination will take place as soon as possible. Even after it is complete, Justice Department officials still plan to take the state-performed autopsy into account in the course of their investigation.”
{mosads}Doubts have been raised about the local investigation, and Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon (D) stressed on Sunday that there is also a federal investigation occurring.
The preliminary local autopsy found that Brown died from gunshot wounds, but the number of shots was not released.