Darren Wilson, the Ferguson, Mo., police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown in August, was not indicted by a grand jury today.

The decision has already sparked renewed protests, for which local police have been preparing: according to a Guardian report, the St. Louis County police department has spent $172,669 on riot gear since August, and the Washington Post writes that police and demonstrators have been working on mutual "rules of engagement" to limit violence. In anticipation of the protests, on Monday Missouri governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency last week and activated the National Guard.

During a surreal, smirking news conference, the St. Louis County prosecutor, Robert P. McCulloch said the grand jury heard 70 hours of testimony from 60 witnesses over the course of 25 days. The jury, McCulloch said, deliberated for two days before reaching their decision.

Soon after McCulloch's 45-minute statement, police were shooting what protestors said was tear gas and CNN was reporting gunshots (and, for no reason, marijuana smoke).

McCulloch released some information from the hearing. According to the prosecutor, Brown came toward Wilson's car, leading the officer to fire his gun 12 times, twice from inside his car and 10 times outside it. Brown's body was found 153 feet east of Wilson's car. McCulloch also said there were conflicting accounts about whether Brown raised his hands before the shooting.

Shortly after the announcement, Brown's family released a statement:

We are profoundly disappointed that the killer of our child will not face the consequence of his actions. While we understand that many others share our pain, we ask that you channel your frustration in ways that will make a positive change. We need to work together to fix the system that allowed this to happen. Join with us in our campaign to ensure that every police officer working the streets in this country wears a body camera. We respectfully ask that you please keep your protests peaceful. Answering violence with violence is not the appropriate reaction. Let's not just make noise, let's make a difference.

Attorneys for Darren Wilson also released a statement about the grand jury's decision: