CHESTERFIELD — The Ferguson police officer severely injured in a protest this summer is no longer unconscious, a family friend said on Tuesday as the officer moved to an out-of-state rehabilitation hospital.
While Officer Travis “TJ†Brown has not spoken yet, he is “cognitively all there,†said Terence Monroe, speaking for the family.
Monroe talked to media at the Spirit of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Airport in Chesterfield just after noon, after more than 100 officers and first responders escorted Brown’s ambulance to the airport from ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ University Hospital.
“We always knew we’d get here, and we’re so glad that it’s finally here,†Monroe said of Brown’s progress. “This was just three months ago, so we know he is going to have to fight. One thing we know about TJ — he’s a fighter, and he’s gonna make his way back.â€
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ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ County police officers Ashley Wallace, left, and Shawntice Midgett join hundreds of family members, friends, and fellow officers as they send off injured Ferguson police officer Travis Brown to a specialized rehabilitation hospital on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024, at Spirit of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ airport in Chesterfield. Brown was injured during a protest on the 10th anniversary of Michael Brown’s death.
Brown was injured Aug. 9 when a protestor running from cops barreled into him outside the Ferguson Police Department, at a gathering on the 10th anniversary of Michael Brown’s death.
Brown
The protester, Elijah Gantt, hit Brown like a football tackle, police said, and fell on top of him, smashing Brown’s head into the pavement as they fell.
On Tuesday, family, friends and first responders gathered to watch Brown leave for the Atlanta rehab facility. The officer and his mother boarded a small plane with the words “survival flight†on its side.
His mother could be seen waving from the plane’s window as it drove toward the tarmac.
“It’s been a long three months,†said Ebonie Davis, Brown’s cousin.
“There was a really rough patch,†Davis continued. “And then to see it all turn around — God is amazing. We’re looking forward to him getting stronger and getting back to the TJ we know and love. This is a big day for our family.â€
Officers from Ellisville, Maplewood, Arnold, ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ County, plus Waterloo, Illinois, and other agencies escorted the ambulance to the airport.
A towering American Flag hung between two fire trucks near where Brown was loaded onto the plane.
“It’s good to see our comrades from all over the county come together,†said Ferguson police Chief Troy Doyle.
Jasmine Brown, the mother of injured Ferguson police officer Travis Brown’s two daughters, joins hundreds of family members, friends and fellow officers as they send off officer Travis Brown to a specialized rehabilitation hospital on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024, at Spirit of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ airport in Chesterfield.
Gantt, the protestor, was arrested right after he collided with Brown and has remained in jail on a $500,000 cash bond — a bond his attorney Ryan Krupp argued was unusually high for the charges.
He is charged with two counts of first-degree assault, resisting arrest, property damage and fourth-degree assault on a special victim.
Gantt has had few court appearances since his arrest. A bond reduction hearing was set for Aug. 19, but his previous attorney waived that hearing after talking to Gantt in the courtroom.
Krupp used a status hearing last month to schedule a Dec. 12 bond reduction hearing.
Ferguson Sgt. Jill Gronewald, second from left, tears up as she join hundreds of family members, friends and fellow officers as they send off injured Ferguson police officer Travis Brown to a specialized rehabilitation hospital on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024, at Spirit of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ airport in Chesterfield.
