"Hands up, don't shoot" became one of the most powerful rallying cries of the Black Lives Matter movement after Michael Brown was shot by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri in August 2014. But the Obama administration's own Department of Justice investigation thoroughly debunked the narrative.

In March 2015, the DOJ released its comprehensive investigation into the shooting. The 86-page report, conducted under Attorney General Eric Holder — who had publicly expressed sympathy for the Brown family — concluded: "There is no credible evidence that Wilson willfully shot Brown as he was attempting to surrender or was otherwise not posing a threat."

The DOJ found that the physical and forensic evidence — including wound trajectory analysis, blood evidence, and DNA on Officer Wilson's weapon — was consistent with Wilson's account that Brown charged at him after a physical altercation at the police vehicle. Brown's DNA was found inside Wilson's patrol car, on Wilson's gun, and on Wilson's uniform, supporting the initial struggle narrative.

Critically, the DOJ report found that several witnesses who had initially supported the "hands up" narrative either recanted their testimony or were contradicted by the physical evidence. Some admitted they hadn't actually seen the shooting and had repeated what they heard from others. Witnesses whose testimony was consistent with the physical evidence described Brown moving toward Wilson, not surrendering.

A St. Louis County grand jury, after hearing testimony from 60 witnesses and reviewing extensive forensic evidence, declined to indict Wilson. The DOJ's independent federal investigation reached the same conclusion.

None of this means there aren't real problems with policing in America. The DOJ's separate investigation into the Ferguson Police Department found genuine issues with discriminatory practices and excessive use of fines and fees. Those findings were valid and important.

But building a national movement on a specific factual claim that was investigated and disproven by the Obama administration's own Justice Department undermines the credibility of legitimate reform efforts. When the foundation of a narrative is false, it makes it harder to address the real issues that do exist.