The Cop Who Shot Michael Brown Is Unlikely To Face Federal Civil Rights Charges

Darren Wilson, the cop who shot unarmed black teenager Michael Brown in Missouri in August, is unlikely to face civil rights charges for killing the teen, The Washington Post reports.

The Justice Department reportedly doesn't have a strong enough case to charge Wilson and prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he intended to violate Brown's constitutional rights, sources told the Post.

The department has also been investigating the policing practices of the Ferguson Police Department. Attorney General Eric Holder has said "the need for wholesale change in that department is appropriate."

Wilson reportedly told investigators that there was an altercation in his police vehicle before he shot Brown. Wilson said Brown was reaching for Wilson's gun.

But other witnesses have told a different story, saying that Brown was shot when he had his hands up in the air in a sign of surrender.

Wilson, who is white, shot Brown after stopping him and a friend for walking in the street.

Protests broke out in Ferguson, a St. Louis suburb, after Brown was shot. Witness accounts saying that Brown had his hands up when Wilson shot him ignited accusations of racism.

Read the full report in The Washington Post >