More Fallout in Ferguson

John Shaw, the city manager of Ferguson, Missouri, has abruptly resigned. His resignation comes less than a week after the U.S. Justice Department released a bristling investigative report that found systemic racial bias in the Ferguson Police Department. The investigation was triggered by a white Ferguson police officer’s fatal shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, last summer.

The department’s investigation noted allegations that Ferguson police officers were directed to intentionally target the city’s largely black residents for traffic tickets and other violations—partly as a mechanism to generate profit for the cash-strapped local government. Many of these residents could not afford to pay their fines and wound up in unsanitary debtors’ jails. In Ferguson, the city manager is effectively the jurisdiction’s top executive, accountable for all government operations.

Already, several Ferguson police officials have been dismissed or have resigned. Other dramatic personnel shifts are expected soon. The Ferguson case has become a flash point in the national conversation about how to reform the nation’s criminal justice system.

In other news…

Killings: Animal-calling contests—during which coyotes, foxes, and other animals are killed—are apparently becoming more popular in the Midwest and the West. They’re also becoming profitable. (via Mother Jones)

Albinos: In East Africa, attacks on albinos are on the rise, according to the United Nations. (via The New York Times)

Ferrets: New York City will keep its ban on ferrets. Other cities and states have dropped such bans, and ferrets are increasingly popular pets. (via The Guardian)

Polar Prison: The town of Churchill, Manitoba, has opened a polar bear prison. (via Now I Know)

Original article from TakePart