Darren Wilson Resigns From Ferguson Police Dept. of 'Own Free Will'
Darren Wilson, the white police officer who shot and killed black teenager Michael Brown, resigned from the Ferguson Police Department Saturday amid protests over a grand jury's decision not to indict him.
Wilson has submitted his resignation, Reuters quoted the officer's attorney, Neil Bruntrager, as saying.
"I, Darren Wilson, hereby resign my commission as a police officer with the City of Ferguson effective immediately," Wilson wrote in his resignation letter, according to St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
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Wilson said he had been told that "my continued employment may put the residents and police officers of the City of Ferguson at risk, which is a circumstance that I cannot allow."
He added that he was waiting for the grand jury's decision before making the decision to resign. "For obvious reasons, I wanted to wait until the grand jury made their decision before I officially made my decision to resign."
The officer said he is resigning of his free will, according to CNN. "I'm not willing to let someone else get hurt because of me."
Wilson said his resignation was "the hardest thing I've ever had to do."
"It was my hope to continue in police work, but the safety of other police officers and the community are of paramount importance to me. It is my hope that my resignation will allow the community to heal," he said in the resignation letter.
Brown, who had allegedly stolen cigars from a convenience store, was shot dead by the officer moments later while responding to a 911 call on Aug. 9. The incident sparked protests, riots, looting and violent clashes with police.
Wilson says he was acting in self-defense when he shot Brown.
Protests have re-erupted in Ferguson and elsewhere after the grand jury decided Monday not to indict the officer.
Demonstrations were held also on Saturday in Ferguson.
"He's 112 days too late," Monica Chambers, a protester, told KMOV, reacting to the officer's resignation.
"In terms of his safety, it is probably the best thing for him," Cynthia Burnes, a nurse's assistant from St. Louis told Reuters. "He is black-listed from this moment on."
Also on Saturday, activists started a seven-day march from Ferguson to Jefferson City, the capital of Missouri, organized by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
Police claim the officer did not know Brown was a suspect when he stopped him and his friend. The two were walking down the middle of the street blocking traffic, and when the officer encountered them he saw the cigars in Brown's hands, police say.
The officer allegedly received injuries to his face during the encounter with Brown. Brown's friend, Johnson, earlier said that the officer pointed a gun at Brown and said, "I'll shoot." The officer fired shots after Brown held his hands up.
