The U.S. Park Police officers involved in the 2017 shooting of an unarmed driver in Fairfax County will not be charged, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday.

Bijan Ghaisar, a 25-year-old accountant, was shot nine times by Officers Alejandro Amaya and Lucas Vinyard after he left the scene of a minor fender bender on November 17, 2017.

“Based on the information available at this time, the [Justice] Department cannot prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the two USPP officers committed willful violations of the applicable federal criminal civil rights statute when they shot Mr. Ghaisar,” officials said in a press release. “Specifically, the Department is unable to disprove a claim of self-defense or defense of others by the officers. Accordingly, the Department has closed its investigation into this matter.”

The family released a statement calling the decision a “cowardly act” and pledging to continue to demand justice, including the possibility of criminal charges being filed in Virginia. “The Justice Department has given us no answers to why Bijan was killed. Instead, they have broken every promise made to us–from keeping us informed about the investigation to personally sharing the results before broadcasting it to the world to, most importantly, protecting Bijan.  Let’s be clear about what happened here: Two people executed an American citizen who they were sworn to protect and serve, and the only reason they’re escaping justice is because they wear badges.”

Much of what is known about the incident came from a video released by Fairfax Police Chief Edwin Roessler, in which Ghaisar stopped his vehicle twice before pulling away when officers approached with guns drawn. The third time the car stopped on a residential street and began to move again, an officer fired multiple shots within seconds; another officer approached and a second round of shots were fired; and two more shots were fired as the car fell down an embankment. Ghaisar was taken to the hospital. He was in a coma for nine days before he was taken off life support, and died 10 hours later.

The FBI took over the investigation three days after the shooting. Little information was released about the case, prompting the Ghaisar family to file a $25 million wrongful death lawsuit in August of 2018. The suit alleges that Park Police didn’t notify Bijan Ghaisar’s parents about the shooting until five hours after it occurred.

The family still lacked answers about what exactly occurred a year later, and demonstrators protested after U.S. Park Police Chief Robert MacLean was promoted this fall. “I feel like at the beginning there were two criminals who shot my son,” Kelly Ghaisar, Gijan’s mother, told WAMU at the time. “Now, we have a criminal system because this delay by itself is criminal.”

The statement from prosecutors does not provide an official picture of what happened, focusing instead on whether there was “evidence to establish beyond a reasonable doubt” that a crime occurred.

Rep. Don Beyer, a Democrat from Virginia, who has followed the case and supported the family, said the lack of answers about what happened is a miscarriage of justice. “The Justice Department failed our community for two years by withholding answers about why police killed Bijan Ghaisar, but this final failure is the worst of all,” Beyer said in a statement.

D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton called on Park Police to “immediately begin an administrative investigation into the shooting to determine whether these officers should be disciplined or fired.”

And Rep. Jennifer Wexton, a Democrat from Virginia, said she is “hopeful that the family will finally see justice in civil court.”

The family had planned to hold a vigil on Sunday to mark the two-year anniversary of Ghasair’s death. Several family members spoke of their pain earlier today on The Kojo Nnamdi Show

“I’m trying to learn how to live with the grief, the permanent hole in my heart,” said James Ghaisar, Bijan’s father. “It is a nightmare every day.”

This story has been updated with comment from the family and lawmakers. 

Previously:
Family Of Va. Man Killed By Park Police Officers Files $25 Million Lawsuit