St. Louis County fortifies police headquarters before Ferguson grand jury ruling

CLAYTON, Mo. — On Saturday, grand jury watch started to feel more like a hurricane watch here in the heart of St. Louis County.

Workers scrambled Saturday morning to barricade police headquarters and other government buildings, residents grabbed supplies at a corner store and some shop owners finished boarding up windows.

“We’ve never seen anything like this,” said Quentin Virgil who repairs shoes across the street from the St. Louis County Police Department. “The law office next door is boarded up. That’s not normal.”

Nothing in the St. Louis area seems normal as the community anxiously awaits a grand jury’s findings in the case of a white police officer who fatally shot Michael Brown, an unarmed black teen.

Brown's death promoted riots in August, and there is a fear among some locals that another round of violence could cost lives and livelihoods.

“I try not to think about it, but if they break my window, they’ll put me out of business,” Maria Mathias, owner of Busy Bee Alterations & Shoe Repair. “They've really got my heart pumping right now."

The grand jury was asked three months ago to decide if Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson should be charged with a crime in the 18-year-old's death. A spokesperson for Prosecutor Robert McCulloch said the panel met on Friday, leading many to believe that a decision was imminent. But late Saturday, it was reported that no announcement would come before Monday.

The area saw weeks of unrest in August as protesters and heavily armed police clashed. Stores in Ferguson were looted and property was destroyed. Missouri’s governor declared a state of emergency earlier this week in anticipation of more violence when the grand jury rules.

Mathias, a business owner in Clayton for 23 years, watched with angst Saturday morning as workers secured the police department across the street.

“They know the decision, that’s why they are doing that,” said Mathias, 62. “It scared me when I saw them putting the bars out there.”

A jewelry store, a restaurant and other businesses around her shop have boarded their storefronts. Mathias said someone wanted $2,000 to put plywood on her windows.

“I can’t afford that,” she said.

A “Justice for Mike Brown Map” identifies dozens of buildings, which could become targets for demonstrators, both those planning peaceful protests and those authorities fear could become violent. Downtown Clayton ranks high because it’s home to St. Louis County’s justice system.

On Saturday morning, law enforcement officers in marked and unmarked cars circled the jail, courthouses and police headquarters as metal fencing went up. Lawyers eating breakfast at a corner diner described having to rush to file cases in the event buildings aren’t open on Monday.

It’s usually the busiest day of the week for Mathias, but by late morning she had only two customers. Sales have been slow since the police shooting in August, she said.

Despite being located directly across from the police department, Mathias said local officials have not visited with her about protest preparations.

“If they are going to protect (government) buildings, then why don’t they protect me too?” she said. “I pay taxes. They came and talked to us when they have the art fair, but now they don’t say anything.”

Tom Wendel, who was taking his family to brunch Saturday morning, said he’s optimistic that the downtown lockdown will be much to do about nothing.

“I think this is unnecessary,” Wendel said. “I hope it’s unnecessary.”

(Editor's note: This story was updated after it initially published.)

Jason Sickles is a reporter for Yahoo News. Follow him on Twitter (@jasonsickles).