Freeman declines charges in Clark shooting

Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced Wednesday that he would not be charging Minneapolis Police Officers Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze in the shooting death of Jamar Clark.

Freeman said that a thorough four-month investigation after the Nov. 15 shooting revealed that Clark was not handcuffed at any time. Police were called to the scene because Clark had been identified as a suspect in a domestic assault and was interfering with paramedics' efforts to treat the victim.

When Ringgenberg and Schwarze arrived, they ordered Clark to remove his hands from his pockets to make sure he did not have a gun. When he refused, the officers moved in and attempted to handcuff Clark. When he resisted, Ringgenberg took Clark to the ground and landed on top of him. However, Ringgenberg felt his gun move to the small of his back. When he reached for it, he felt Clark's hand on the gun, an account that was supported by DNA evidence.

Schwarze threatened to shoot Clark if he did not release the gun. Clark refused to do so and Schwarze shot Clark in the head. Officer Schwarze's actions were reasonable because if Clark successfully pulled the gun from the holster, Ringgenberg and Schwarze would have been shot and other bystanders might have been hit as well, Freeman said.

After detailing the events of that night, Freeman also showed video from a bystander and cameras in two different ambulances.

Directly below are links to the report from the Hennepin County Attorney's Office, Mike Freeman's statement from March 30, as well as videos and most of the evidence reviewed by the prosecutors.