Near-Sighted said Johnson ran away before the first gunshot

Dorian Johnson told to the public and then to the investigators and then to the grand jury a false story that he remained next to Michael Brown until after Police Officer Darren Wilson fired his first gunshot from inside the police vehicle. However, several eyewitnesses said that Johnson ran away before the first gunshot, and several other eyewitnesses said that Brown was the only person standing next to the vehicle when the first gunshot was fired. 

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The best eyewitness about Johnson’s first movements immediately after the encounter at the police vehicle was a 20-year-old African-American female. She is identified in the Justice Department’s report as Witness 135 and in the grand jury documents as Witness 44.

Since she was significantly near-sighted and was not wearing her eyeglasses or contact lenses, I will call her Near-Sighted here. Her location during the incident is marked by the NS in the upper-left part of this image:

NS = Near-Sighted .... PV = Police Vehicle ..... MC = Monte Carlo
Verticalish red line on left side = Near-Sighted's path home after the shooting
Horizontalish red line in the middle = Johnson's flight direction, according to Near-Sighted

Near-Sighted was walking on the sidewalk along the south side of Canfield Drive.She was passing the last tree there and then intended to turn south and cut across the lawn to her apartment building (see the verticalish red line on the left side of the photograph). 

When she reached the last tree, however, she stopped to watch Wilson's police vehicle, which was stopped in the middle of the street. She saw Michael Brown and Dorian Johnson beyond the police vehicle, walking away in the middle of the street. She then watched the police vehicle back up and stop across both lanes, blocking Brown's and Johnson's path. At this moment, she then was standing in the place marked NS, and Wilson's police vehicle was standing in the place marked PV. 

Now Near-Sighted was looking at the police vehicle's driver side, next to which Brown and Johnson were standing with their backs to her. Although she was near-sighted and was not wearing her eyeglasses or contact lenses, she was close enough to perceive Brown's and Johnson's basic actions at the police vehicle.  

Near-Sighted did not mention any car being behind the police vehicle. 

Near-Sighted's description of the event contradicts Johnson's description in two important elements. 

* She said that he ran away from the police vehicle before the first gunshot was fired inside the vehicle. He said that he ran away after that gunshot.

* She said that he ran a considerable distance far down Canfield Drive. He said that he ran straight to the nearby Monte Carlo.  

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On October 28, Near-Sighted testified to the grand jury and described her location as follows: 

Prosecutor  Give us an idea of how you were moving and what was going on ...? 

 Near-Sighted  … I did come down this street [southeast along Canfield Drive]. I didn't actually stop until I got like to the last tree. That’s when I was pretty close enough to see what was going on. 

 Prosecutor  That's on the south side of Canfield? 

 Near-Sighted  Yes, ma'am. …. I saw the police car sitting about here. I was about right here [at the last tree] when I first stop to get a look, when they were at the car. The first shot [was fired when] I was right here. 

(Pages 50-51)

Immediately after the police vehicle backed up and stopped across both lanes, Brown was standing near the vehicle's back end. Brown immediately rushed forward to the driver's door and began his assault on Wilson. Johnson stood by for a while, but then ran around the vehicle's back end and continued running away on Canfield Drive.

Prosecutor  Did the little guy [Johnson] seem to be helping [Brown at the vehicle]? 

 Near-Sighted  No. 

 Prosecutor  Did you notice him [Johnson]? 

 Near-Sighted  He was standing there for a while, but once they [Brown and Wilson] started fighting, he [Johnson] just ran. 

 Prosecutor  Was he next to Michael Brown on the same [driver’s] side of the car? 

 Near-Sighted  Yeah, he [Johnson's] was on the same side of the car, still at the back of it. 

(Page 17)

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In her first interview, with FBI special agents on August 16, Near-Sighted summarized the sequence of events. Johnson ran away before the first gunshot in the vehicle and ran away down Canfield Drive -- in the same direction that Brown ran subsequently.  

I saw the officer back his van up and hit the two boys. Immediately his [Brown's] friend [Johnson] took off, and Mike started fighting with the officer through his window. I don't know why they were fighting through the window but then you heard the first shot and all the cars on the street stopped. They started backing up. Then he [Brown] started running. He stopped halfway and turned around, and that's when you heard the rest of the shots. 

(Page 2)

Near-Sighted was standing near an eyewitness whom I call Pickup Driver and who did try to back up. Later in that same FBI interview, she summarized again the sequence of events:

The first thing that I saw was the police car. Usually you don't see a police car over here unless something's happening. The first thing I saw was the police car sitting out there, and I saw the two boys. I don't know what he [Wilson] said to them but then I saw him back up in a slant and hit them. They were .... on the street, and he backed up on a slant . That's what caught my attention. I'm like: "what's going on, looking down there?" 

I saw the boy [Brown] get mad and come around to the window, and that's when everything happened. 

His friend just took off running. He didn't stick around to see what was going on. .... His friend ran down the street.  

(Pages 4-5)

Still later in that same FBI interview, she summarized again the sequence of events:

FBI Special Agent  So, you said that after he [Wilson] bumped into the two guys, one [Johnson] ran away. Did he run around the front of the car or the rear? 

Near-Sighted  He went around the back. 

FBI Special Agent  Around the back of the car? 

Near-Sighted  Yeah. ..... He ran away from West Florissant .... down Canfield. ..... 

The other boy [Brown] stayed and started fighting. ..... You saw them get in some type of physical altercation for about 15 seconds. Then you heard the first gunshot. 

(Pages 7-8)

When Brown ran away from the police vehicle, he ran in the same direction as Johnson had run.

Near-Sighted  When I heard the first shot, his [Wilson's] door was closed. His shot came through his window. .... It was inside of the car. ..... 

He [Brown] ran not but about four or five steps, and then he stopped. .... He [Brown] was going in the same direction as his friend [Johnson] was going away from the car .... 

FBI Special Agent  Did he [Brown] run around the front of the car or around the back of the car? 

Near-Sighted  He was already at the driver's side window, so he just started going away from the car, towards the back. 

(Page 10) 

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Near-Sighted's statements are compelling evidence for the following two points. 

1) Johnson ran away from the police vehicle a considerable time -- she said about 15 seconds -- before the first gunshot was fired inside the police vehicle. 

2) Johnson ran away a considerable distance down Canfield Drive. He did not run directly to any car immediately behind the police vehicle.