Exactly that. It's likely Brown panicked and attacked Wilson, trying to grab his gun, and was shot. I'd have likely done the same, had I been in Wilson's place. In Brown's... maybe too. I do tend to think before I act, but after just committing a crime, even a minor one, most people are jumpy and afraid of getting caught. I don't commit crimes so I don't know, but it's nothing unusual.
Note, once Brown went for Wilson's gun, he knew (for certain), that Brown was willing to kill him. Now, we don't have a video of what exactly has happened, but if he was violently assaulted, pushed his attacker back and then shot him dead, this could've been very well justified. Not knowing why Brown would do this, nor knowing what he was going to do, emptying a mag into him would be a human thing to do. While police isn't supposed to act on human instincts, this does downgrade it from a horrifying example of racism and bigotry to a tragic, but not unexpected mistake.
I know that if I was assaulted, with the attacker clearly wanting my weapon, I'd likely shoot him the moment I manage to get some room to draw and aim it. The attacker's skin color, age or gender doesn't matter here. It could have happened a number of ways, with Brown, perhaps, having a chance to survive was the cop a bit more level-headed, but it likely happened that way:
1. Brown steals stuff from the store and thinks "I'd better avoid the police from now on, they're probably on me already."
2. Wilson comes by in his car and thinks "Oh, a kid jaywalking, we'd better set him straight."
3. Seeing the police car stop, Brown thinks "Hell, they got me!" and panics, attacking Wilson and trying to take his gun.
4. Wilson, stressed by the sudden assault, kicks Brown back, draws his gun, and shoots until he goes down. All in less than a minute.
This is a generous idea, but when you imagine it went like that, pretty much anyone would've reacted the same. It's a reasonable assumption that if Brown managed to take the gun, the next thing he'd do would be to fire it at Wilson. Wilson knew this, and, like any sane person would, acted on that assumption. Even if he wasn't really in danger, he had every reason to think he was fighting for his life. And remember. This happens fast. There is no time for precise evaluation, or even precise aiming. Wilson was acting under duress, since wounds on Brown's body show that he didn't aim very well, bullets were all over the his body. If Wilson gunned him down in cold blood, the wounds would be much more concentrated and much closer to the heart. Brown likely acted like he wanted to kill Wilson, and got an appropriate response. Then again, we don't have an exact account of how it really happened.
Not that it matters much. What really matters is how atrociously the rest of the department handled it. If it really went like that, it's all more moronic to go rogue over something like this. It could have been a footnote in the local news, along the lines of "stupid thief gets himself shot over some cheap stuff". Instead, the whole PD went mad, started obfuscating the case and throwing tear gas at people. That is the real problem.
