A former Milwaukee police officer has been cleared of all charges in the shooting death of an unarmed African American homeless man with a history of mental illness.

On Monday, the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office announced that former Milwaukee police officer Christopher Manney would not be charged in the fatal shooting of 31-year-old Dontre Hamilton. Manney, who is white, shot Hamilton 14 times at Red Arrow Park in downtown Milwaukee.

In a 25-page report released to the public, District Attorney John Chisholm said the shooting was "justified."

"[B]ased on all the evidence and analysis presented in this report, I come to the conclusion that Officer Manney's use of force in this incident was justified self-defense and that defense cannot be reasonably overcome to establish a basis to charge Officer Manney with a crime," the report says.

The incident occurred on April 30 after an employee at a nearby Starbucks called 911 to complain that Hamilton was sleeping on a park bench. Two officers responded to the call by checking on Hamilton. They then decided Hamilton had done nothing wrong or illegal.

Because Manney was unaware that officers had already responded to a desk call, he also arrived at the park. According to the report, an altercation ensued as Manney attempted to perform a routine pat-down.

"Manney tried to use his baton to subdue Hamilton, but Hamilton got control of it and swung it at Manney, hitting him on the side of the neck. Manney then shot Hamilton repeatedly," MPD Internal Affairs says.

Chisholm said Hamilton grabbed the officer's baton and began swinging it at him.

"The use of deadly force against Dontre Hamilton was not a choice P.O. Manney made voluntarily, but was instead a defensive action forced upon him by Dontre Hamilton's deadly attack with a police baton," Chisholm wrote, according to the New York Times.

Jonathan Safran, an attorney representing the Hamilton family, said they were "extremely disappointed" with the decision and that the case "cries out for justice, criminal charges against Christopher Manney, and accountability to Dontre Hamilton's family," reports USA Today.

The ACLU of Wisconsin also released a statement criticizing the decision.

"If Officer Christopher Manney did not violate the law, then is anyone legally responsible for Mr. Hamilton's death? Does the criminal law protect individuals like Mr. Hamilton from deadly force exercised by police officers? Are police officers above the law?" the statement says.

Related