Police officers who killed Alton Sterling will not face criminal charges

The Sterling family has vowed to continue with a civil lawsuit

The Baton Rouge police officers who shot and killed Alton Sterling nearly two years ago will not face criminal charges, Louisiana authorities have said.

The decision marks the latest instance in America where officials have declined to prosecute police following high-profile shootings of black men.

Mr Sterling was killed in July 2016 by police responding to an emergency call claiming that someone was threatened with a gun. The officers arrived to find the 37-year-old Mr Sterling selling CDs. They fatally shot him less than 90 seconds later, and claimed that they removed a gun from his pocket afterwards.

“This decision was not taken lightly,” Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry said during a press briefing Tuesday. “I know the Sterling family is hurting. I know that they may not agree with this decision.”

The state decision not to proceed with charges follows after the Justice Department declined to pursue charges against the officers, Blane Salmon and Howie Lake. At the time, the department determined there was “insufficient” evidence to prove that Mr Sterling’s civil rights had been violated.

It is generally very difficult to bring charges against officers, and federal officials would need to prove intent at the time of the shooting for a conviction.

Mr Sterling’s death sparked widespread protest after a video captured on a cell phone showed the incident. In that video, two police are seen on top of Mr Sterling before one pulls his gun and shoots. The video later shows them removing something from Mr Sterling’s pocket.

During the 20-minute press announcement, Mr Landry said that he had concluded that the two officers had “attempted to make a lawful arrest of Alton Sterling based upon probable cause.” The officers had operated on the assumption that Mr Sterling was armed, he said, and the officers later removed a loaded .38 caliber handgun from his pocket.

Mr Landry also noted that toxicology reports had shown Mr Sterling had drugs in his system at the time of his death. He said that the drugs likely contributed to Mr Sterling’s behavior during the encounter with police, and subsequent attempt at arrest.

A report showed that Mr Sterling’s body tested positive for cocaine, opioids, and other drugs.

“It is reasonable that Mr. Sterling was under the influence and that contributed to his noncompliance,” he said.

The video showing Mr Sterling’s death came at a delicate time in race relations in the country. Just one day after the outrage, police shot and killed school cafeteria worker Philando Castille in Minnesota — and the aftermath of that shooting was posted live on Facebook. Mr Castille, who was licensed to carry a firearm, had reportedly told the officer he had a legal gun in the vehicle before he was shot.

Five police officers in Dallas were also killed by a black man in that same week in 2016, and three more officers were killed in Baton Rouge.

Mr Sterlin’s family, and civil rights groups, criticised Mr Landry’s decision, saying that the state had failed them and Mr Sterling.

“The system failed us,” Sandra Sterling, an aunt, said during a press conference. “He was not a monster. … This was a family man. A family man.”

The family promised to continue to press forward with a civil lawsuit they filed last year.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) released a statement saying that they would support the family, and called for the

“Alton Sterling was shot to death by two Baton Rouge police officers who were on top of him as he lay on the ground. He became the 122nd Black person to be killed by U.S. law enforcement in 2016. His death is yet another example of police brutality against people of color and our country’s systemic failure to hold law enforcement accountable for that brutality. Justice will not be served until we end this epidemic of police violence against people of color once and for all,” Jane Johnson, the interim executive director of the ACLU Louisiana said.