Police Department

A grand jury in Manhattan has voted not to indict a New York City police officer who fatally shot another officer, who was armed and off duty at the time, on an East Harlem street in May, according to Robert M. Morgenthau, the Manhattan district attorney.

The officer, Andrew P. Dunton, who has been on administrative duty since the May 28 shooting, killed Officer Omar J. Edwards, firing six shots on a rainy night. Neither officer was in uniform; Officer Dunton was working a plainclothes assignment, and Officer Edwards had just finished a shift.

Officer Dunton testified before the secret panel last week, and the grand jurors have since delivered a “no true bill,” meaning Officer Dunton, 30, will not face criminal charges for the shooting, Mr. Morgenthau said in a statement. The officer may still face an internal Police Department review that could lead to disciplinary measures.

The shooting of Officer Edwards, who was black, by Officer Dunton, who is white, prompted concern by some public officials and community activists over race relations and stereotypes within the police force. Several elected officials called upon the Police Department to explore procedures that could help prevent so-called friendly fire and to examine the impact race has on officers’ decision-making.

After Officer Edwards, 25, who was assigned to the Housing Bureau’s Impact Response Team, left work around 10:30 p.m., he encountered a man trying to break into his car on Second Avenue, near 124th Street, the authorities have said.

A scuffle ensued, and after the man slipped from Officer Edwards’s grasp, the rookie officer gave chase with his Smith & Wesson 9-millimeter pistol in hand, the police have said. Three police officers in an unmarked car, one of them Officer Dunton, saw the men running, and they hopped out of their vehicle, the police have said.

With his gun drawn and crouching behind a door of the car, Officer Dunton ordered Officer Edwards to stop and drop his weapon, the police have said. As Officer Edwards turned, his pistol was pointing in the direction of Officer Dunton, who then fired, according to the police’s preliminary account of the events.

Witnesses gave different accounts of whether Officer Edwards ever identified himself as a police officer.

Officer Dunton and responding units did not realize that Officer Edwards was a member of the force until they cut his shirt open as he lay handcuffed and bloodied on the pavement. Only then did they see a Police Academy T-shirt and find his police shield in a pocket, the police have said.