Curfew in Missouri town wracked by race-tinged riots

A crowd of some 200 demonstrators defied a curfew that came into effect in Ferguson, Missouri early on Sunday, days after police shot dead an unarmed black teen, triggering a wave of rioting.

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and a curfew starting at midnight Saturday (0500 GMT Sunday) until 5:00 am for the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, where 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot dead by police on August 9.

Ferguson was mostly peaceful when the curfew began on Sunday, local media reported. But a crowd of about 200 protesters gathered in the area where Brown was shot and defied orders to disperse.

Heavily armed riot police, backed up by reinforcements in armored vehicles, hurled smoke canisters and slowly moved in to break up the crowd. While the media images were dramatic, there were no reported incidents of violence.

Nixon said he ordered the measures "to protect the people and property of Ferguson" after looters raided town stores and scuffled with police overnight Friday to Saturday.

The goal is "to contain those who are drowning out the voice of the people with their actions," said Nixon, speaking at a press conference Saturday held at a local church.

Nixon was repeatedly interrupted by locals angered by an apparent lack of accountability for the largely white police force responsible for Brown's death in the majority black area.

"Excuse me, governor, you need to charge that police officer with murder," said a heckler, referring to the white officer who shot Brown. "Yeah!" cried out supporters.

"Call for an investigation," said another heckler, as palpable anger and frustration simmered in the church hall. "Where's the indictment?"

Others demanded that police guard their homes and businesses.

Missouri Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson, the African-American officer that governor Nixon put in charge of restoring peace, stepped forward to speak.

"Yelling at each other is not going to solve that," Johnson said.

"I don't care who you are, how old you are, and I don't care if you were peaceful protesters last night or a rioter rioting, you'll still get the same answers. Tonight we will enforce it with curfew. We won't enforce it with trucks and tear gas. We'll communicate and tell you... it's time to go home."

Nixon also said 40 more FBI agents arrived in Ferguson to advance the investigation into Brown's death. Many went door to door in the community seeking additional witnesses.