Last night the city of Ferguson, Missouri descended into chaos following the announcement that the police officer who shot dead the unarmed black teenager Michael Brown will not face indictment.

The decision regarding officer Darren Wilson’s fate was made by a grand jury, which had “every scrap of evidence” presented before it came to a verdict.

Prosecutor Bob McCulloch laid out that evidence when he declared the jury’s decision at 8pm last night – with that press conference almost immediately followed by the start of protests, some violent, around the US.

Nowhere were the displays of anger more potent than in Ferguson itself, where 18-year-old Brown was killed on 9 August this year.

This is the story of what happened that day, starting from 11.45am, according to McCulloch and the evidence heard by the jury. It begins with Wilson, in his SUV, hearing dispatches describing a black male wearing a red hat, khaki shorts and yellow socks and accompanied by another male who had “strong-armed” a nearby shop to steal cigarillos.

Wilson encounters Brown and Johnson

As Wilson drove west on Canfield Drive, he passed Brown and friend Dorian Johnson walking east down the middle of the street.

He tells the pair to get off the road

As Wilson reached the pair, he told them to move to the sidewalk. Words were exchanged, and they continued walking down the middle of the street. As they passed, he noticed that Brown was wearing a red hat and yellow socks and had cigarillos in his hand.

Wilson blocks the street; a 'tussle' ensues

Wilson radioed for support. He backed his vehicle up at an angle, blocking Brown and Johnson’s path as well as blocking car traffic in both directions. Many witnesses reported an altercation — “tussling, wrestling, tug of war” — between Wilson and Brown while Brown was at the car’s window and Wilson was seated inside.

Witnesses say Brown punched Wilson

Witnesses gave conflicting statements on what happened next – some said that Brown punched Wilson, or that Brown was partially inside the car, or that no part of Brown was in the car, or that Wilson fired at Brown from inside the car. Wilson was later found to have redness and swelling on his face.

Wilson's gun fires twice

Two shots were fired inside the car. One bullet struck the door’s arm rest, and one was never found. An injury to Brown’s right thumb was probably caused by one of these because an autopsy found soot in the wound. Brown’s blood and/or DNA was found in the car, on the outside of the driver’s-side door, on the left rear door and on Wilson’s clothing and gun.

Brown runs

Almost all witnesses said Brown hesitated after the shots were fired, then fled east on Canfield.

Wilson chases

Wilson got out of his SUV and chased Brown eastward.

Some witnesses say Wilson fires at Brown

Some witnesses said Wilson began firing as Brown walked or ran away.

Brown stops, turns around

At the corner of Copper Creek and Canfield Brown stopped and turned back toward Wilson, facing west. Wilson stopped as well. Some witnesses said Wilson didn’t fire until Brown turned around.

Brown moves toward Wilson

Brown moved west toward Wilson. Again, witness accounts differed. Some said Brown didn’t move toward Wilson but stood with his hands raised. Several said he didn’t raise his hands, raised them briefly, or held his stomach. Some said he stumbled toward Wilson; others said he moved quickly or “charged.”

Wilson shoots at Brown

Some said Wilson stopped firing when Brown stopped moving towards him and resumed firing when Brown moved toward him again. The sound of shots captured by a person video-chatting in a nearby apartment indicated two sets of shots with a gap in the middle.

Brown dies

Wilson fired several more rounds, killing Brown. Three autopsies agreed that seven or eight bullets hit Brown, all from the front. Three bullets hit while he was either falling or bent at the waist toward Wilson, including what was likely the fatal shot to the top of his head. Brown’s blood was found 25 feet farther east on Canfield than where his body lay, 153 feet from Wilson’s SUV.

In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Show all 55 1 /55 In pictures: New Ferguson unrest In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers in riot gear line up against protesters in Ferguson AFP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters link arms as they block the road in front of the Ferguson Police Department EPA In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest National Guard troops stand guard outside the Ferguson Police Department after violent protests engulfed the area Getty In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers in riot gear hold a line as they watch protests in St Louis, Missouri, over the shooting of Michael Brown AFP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters march through Los Angeles on Tuesday, the day after a grand jury decided not to prosecute the police officer who fatally shot Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, in August Reuters In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protestors chant slogans in Los Angeles during demonstrations against a decision by a Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police squad car is turned over by demonstrators during a protest in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protestor confronts police vehicles with her hands up as police attempt to clear the streets in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers react to violent protesters during a second night of protests in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester adds wood to a fire burning in Oakland In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A New York City Police NYPD officer struggles with demonstrators protesting against the verdict announced in the shooting death of Michael Brown, as they block traffic near the Lincoln Tunnel in New York In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Demonstrators march with their hands raised in protest against a grand jury's decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting of Michael Brown in New York's Time Square In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A demonstrator sits in front of a street fire during a demonstration following the grand jury decision in the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown, in Oakland. The grand jury decided not to indict a white police officer over the fatal August shooting of an unarmed black teenager In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protestor is arrested as police clear the area rond the police headquarters in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Michael Brown's mother Leslie McSpadden (left) and other protesters react after hearing the grand jury decision in the fatal shooting of her son in Ferguson, Missouri Getty Images In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A demonstrator holds a protest sign in Oakland after the announcement of the grand jury decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police guard the Ferguson police department as rioting erupts following the disclosure of the grand jury decision in the killing of Michael Brown Getty Images In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police in riot gear tangle with a woman in front of emergency vehicles in Ferguson Missouri In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police fire tear gas at protesters in Ferguson AFP/Getty Images In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester holding a flare runs on Highway 580 during a demonstration following the grand jury decision in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protestor stands in front of police vehicles with his hands up Getty Images In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Men try to stop protesters from throwing rocks at local businesses after a grand jury returned no indictment in the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protestors stand and kneel in the street as police advance on them in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester burns an American flag on Highway 580 during a demonstration following the grand jury decision in the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown, in Oakland In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Riot policemen clash with protesters in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A man walks past a burning building during rioting after a grand jury returned no indictment in the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Michael Brown's mother Leslie McSpadden (C) and other protesters react after hearing the grand jury decision in the fatal shooting of her son in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Dante Kaleo holds a protest sign while marching on Interstate 580 in Oakland In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest People lay on the ground on Rodeo Drive and Wilshire Blvd during a demonstration in Beverly Hills, following the grand jury decision in the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A gas station burns as demonstrators protest the Grand Jury decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson over the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A woman treats her face for possible tear gas exposure in Ferguson Missouri In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protestors parade in the parking lot of a burning auto parts store in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police grab a protester during a demonstration in Oakland In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters block Interstate 580 in Oakland In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Cars burn at a dealership in Dellwood In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A woman gets water poured on her face after police pepper sprayed demonstrators attempting to stop traffic on Interstate 5 following the grand jury decision in the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown, in Seattle In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police vehicle passes a business set ablaze by protestors in Ferguson In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest People walk away from a warehouse in flames after the grand jury's decision AP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A building burns opposite Canfield Drive, the street where Michael Brown was shot Tim Walker In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Demonstrators flee as police fire tear gas during a demonstration to protest the death 18-year-old Michael Brown GETTY In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police car burns in Ferguson, Missouri AP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A group of people raise their arms while chanting "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" during a protest AP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers confront protesters after the announcement of the grand jury decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson AP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A group of protesters vandalize a police vehicle AP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters vandalize a police car outside the Ferguson Police Department REUTERS In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A woman approaches the barricade to confront the police outside the Ferguson Police Department REUTERS In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester stands with his hands on his head as a cloud of tear gas approaches after a grand jury returned no indictment REUTERS In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest St. Louis County police officers stand guard in front of the Ferguson police department GETTY In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters gather in front of the Ferguson Police Department before the announcement of the grand jury decision AP In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest People embrace at the memorial location for Michael Brown in Ferguson Missouri, EPA In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police officer secures an area around the Buzz Westfall Justice Center in Clayton, Missouri where a grand jury is considering whether to indict a white Ferguson police officer who shot and killed an 18-year-old black teenager, Michael Brown. JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police rush in to break up protesters outside the Ferguson Police Station in Ferguson, Missouri EPA In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Michael Brown's family attorney Anthony Gray (L) speaks during an announcement for Justice Disciple volunteers Reuters In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A makeshift memorial on the street in Ferguson where Michael Brown died Getty In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Demonstrators in Ferguson, Missouri, mount a protest ahead of the grand jury’s decision. Such protests have been ongoing in the city since 18-year-old Michael Brown’s killing Getty

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