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The white police officer who fatally shot black teen Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 will not face charges.

It's been nearly six years since a grand jury declined to indict the officer, Darren Wilson, after the shooting that sparked months of unrest in Ferguson and made the St Louis suburb synonymous with a national debate over police treatment of minorities.

Civil rights leaders and 18-year-old Brown's mother had hoped that Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell, St Louis County's first black prosecutor, would reopen the case after he took office in January 2019.

Bell quietly launched a review of the case earlier this year - but the family's hopes for justice were crushed on Thursday when he announced that he will not be pressing charges against Wilson.

'Can we prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime occurred? The answer to that is no,' Bell said at a news conference.

'My heart breaks' for Michael's parents, he added. 'I know this is not the result they were looking for and that their pain will continue forever.'

The dramatic decision promises to reopen old wounds amid a renewed and intensified national conversation about racial injustice following the officer-involved death of George Floyd in May.

Describing the announcement as 'one of the most difficult things I've had to do', Bell said that after a five-month review of witness statements, forensic reports and other evidence his office was unable to prove that Wilson committed murder or manslaughter.

'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?' Bell said.

'We cannot prove that he did.'

But, he said, 'our investigation does not exonerate Darren Wilson.'

'There is so many points in which Darren Wilson could have handled the situation differently and if he had Michael Brown might still be alive,' he said. 'But that is not the question before us.'

Bell - who took office last year as a reform-minded prosecutor promising to eliminate cash bail for nonviolent offenders and to increase the use of programs that allow defendants to avoid jail time - faced no restrictions in re-examining Brown's death for potential murder charges.

Wilson was never charged and tried, so double jeopardy was not an issue. There is no statute of limitations on filing murder charges.
 
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