Ferguson officer Darren Wilson is negotiating his resignation

Wilson did not want to resign during the grand jury proceedings, for fear he would appear guilty

Published November 21, 2014 3:26PM (EST)

In this Feb. 11, 2014 image from video released by the City of Ferguson, Mo., officer Darren Wilson attends a city council meeting in Ferguson.         (AP/City of Ferguson)
In this Feb. 11, 2014 image from video released by the City of Ferguson, Mo., officer Darren Wilson attends a city council meeting in Ferguson. (AP/City of Ferguson)

The grand jury tasked with determining whether Ferguson, Missouri, Officer Darren Wilson will be indicted for fatally shooting unarmed teenager Michael Brown entered what could be its last session on Friday morning. Meanwhile, Wilson is in the midst of negotiating his own resignation.

CNN's Evan Perez and Shimon Prokupecz report:

Wilson maintains he has done nothing wrong, and the resignation talks have hinged on whether a grand jury returns an indictment against him in Brown's death, the sources said.

While Wilson has told associates he would resign to help ease pressure and protect his fellow officers, he's expressed concern about resigning while the grand jury was hearing evidence for fear it would appear he was admitting fault.

According to CNN, Wilson could announce his resignation today -- unless the grand jury decides to indict him, in which case he could reevaluate his plan.

Wilson, the six-year veteran of the department with no disciplinary history, fatally shot Brown on Aug. 9 after a scuffle on Canfield Drive in the St. Louis suburb. Since September, the grand jury has heard evidence in an effort to determine what happened that afternoon, and whether Wilson should be held liable for Brown's death.

Meanwhile, protesters have been staging a steady stream of sit-ins, marches and meetings, readying themselves for the inevitable clash with the police when the grand jury finally announces its decision. "This is a mature movement," said organizer DeRay McKesson in an interview with Reuters. "It is a different movement that [sic] it was in August. Then it just had anger, justifiable anger. Now we are organized. We are strategizing. And we are going to bring our message to the power structure."


By Joanna Rothkopf

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Darren Wilson Ferguson Grand Jury Michael Brown