Prosecutors Declined — Again — To Charge The Ferguson Police Officer Who Shot Michael Brown

Nearly six years after Michael Brown was shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer, sparking months of protests in the Missouri city and across the US, a county prosecutor announced Thursday that his office will not charge the officer after reinvestigating the case.

The white officer, Darren Wilson, fatally shot Brown, 18, on Aug. 9, 2014, while attempting to detain the Black teenager for his role in a theft at a convenience store. In November 2014, a grand jury cleared Wilson of criminal charges after the officer testified that he had feared for his life, though Brown was unarmed.

"Although this case represents one of the most significant moments in St. Louis's history, the question for this office was a simple one: Could we prove beyond a reasonable doubt that when Darren Wilson shot Michael Brown, he committed murder or manslaughter under Missouri law?" St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell said during a press conference. "The answer to that question is no."