Man charged with hurting cop during Ferguson protest released from jail

Richard Newburger

A man has been released from jail on his own recognizance after being charged with beating a police officer in the Loop Wednesday afternoon while protesting the decision of a Missouri grand jury to not charge a Ferguson police officer with fatally shooting an unarmed 18-year-old black man.

Richard Newburger, 57, and two 63-year-old women were arrested near Jackson and State, police said.

Newburger, of the 2300 block of North Spaulding, faces a felony count of aggravated battery of a police officer. The women, both from Chicago, were charged with misdemeanor counts of obstructing traffic and resisting an officer.

A judge released Newburger on an I-bond in court on Thursday, according to Cook County Circuit Court records. He is next scheduled to appear in court Dec. 3.

A Missouri grand jury’s decision Monday not to charge Darren Wilson, the Ferguson officer who shot and killed Michael Brown in August, has incited protests and riots across the country.