Federal appeals court agrees to rehear Ferguson lawsuit

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A federal appeals court will rehear a lawsuit stemming from the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the full 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed Tuesday to hear Dorian Johnson's lawsuit.

Johnson was with Brown when Brown was shot by officer Darren Wilson in 2014. Wilson was not charged and later resigned, but the shooting of the unarmed, black 18-year-old by a white officer led to months of protests.

Johnson's lawsuit alleges that Wilson illegally detained Johnson, and that Wilson's actions were part of a pattern of misconduct by Ferguson police.

Lawyers for Ferguson, former police chief Tom Jackson and Wilson sought dismissal of the lawsuit. A federal judge and an appeals court panel refused to throw out the case.