Driver Who Hit Ferguson Protester Won't Face Hennepin Co. Charges

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The 40-year-old driver who hit a protester in Minneapolis last fall during a demonstration following the decision in Ferguson, Missouri, will not face charges from the Hennepin County Attorney's Office.

The attorney's office said Thursday that it has declined to charge Jeffrey P. Rice, of St. Paul, who knocked over a protester with his car on Nov. 25. The protester, a woman, suffered minor injuries in the incident. She'd been in a group of protesters blocking traffic near the 3rd Precinct police station on a busy Lake Street intersection.

"After reviewing all of the facts from the police investigation, prosecutors determined that the actions Mr. Rice took did not reflect intent or actions that constitute a crime that could be charged," the attorney's office said.

Immediately following the November incident, Rice reported it to police. He was not arrested.

The demonstration he drove through was one of several that popped up across the nation following the Ferguson grand jury decision, in which a white police officer was not indicted for fatally shooting a black teenager.

Minneapolis Police are reportedly sending the case on to the Minneapolis City Attorney's office for potential charges.