US officers who shot black man will not face charges

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON

Two white Louisiana police officers who fatally shot a black man will not face charges, the Justice Department said Wednesday, citing "insufficient evidence".

The announcement follows a 10-month investigation into the death of Alton Sterling, 37, who was shot multiple times by Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake as they responded to a call about a man with a gun outside of a convenience store in Baton Rouge.

The video recording sparked widespread outrage and civil unrest in the Louisiana capital.

But the Justice Department said while Sterling's death is "tragic" it does not meet the "high legal standard" necessary to charge the officers with wrongdoing.

"In light of this, and for the reasons explained below, the federal investigation concluded that this matter is not a prosecutable violation of the federal statutes," the agency said in a statement.

The Justice Department detailed the events leading up to the fatal shots being fired, saying that when the officers initially confronted Sterling he refused to comply with their orders, eventually resulting in a series of encounters that took Salamoni and Sterling to the ground.

While wrestling with Sterling, Salamoni yelled the suspect was reaching for a gun -- shooting him three times in the chest before rolling over. Shot, Sterling began to sit up, as Lake ordered him to stay on the ground.

The Justice Department said he did not, at which point, Salamoni fired three additional shots.

Lake recovered a .38 caliber revolver investigators later confirmed had six bullets "at the time of this exchange", the Justice Department said.

The officers have been cleared of federal charges but Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry said they will now face a state investigation.

"This matter now needs to be investigated for possible state criminal violations," Landry said in a statement.

Landry said he has asked the Justice Department to turn over its findings to the Louisiana State Police "in order to ensure this matter is investigated by the agency with the most expertise in officer-involved shootings”.