By Verena Dobnik and Colleen Long
Associated Press
NEW YORK — A grand jury has decided not to re-indict a New York City police officer in the fatal shooting of an unarmed teenager in his home amid a crackdown on illegal drugs.
Bronx District Attorney Robert Johnson and the teen’s parents say they’re disappointed by the decision announced Thursday.
Officer Richard Haste was indicted last summer on manslaughter charges in the death of 18-year-old Ramarley Graham.
Haste pursued Graham into his apartment and shot him in the bathroom. He says he believed the teen was armed.
The initial charges were dropped in May. The judge said prosecutors had improperly left the grand jury with the impression it shouldn’t consider testimony by other officers, who said they’d radioed Haste to warn him they thought Graham was armed.
Federal prosecutors say they’ll review evidence in the case.
Copyright 2013 Associated Press