CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Tuesday night update: Hundreds of protesters gathered in four different locations across Charlotte.
They took to the streets for peaceful protests in the wake of a grand jury's decision clearing Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown.
They gathered at Marshall Park, the federal courthouse, CMPD headquarters and the NAACP held an interfaith service at a church.
The city of Charlotte released this statement about Tuesday night's events:
"It is the City of Charlotte's understanding that tonight's events have concluded. They were peaceful and without incident."
Leaders echo frustration over Ferguson decision
There has been an emotional impact on citizens of Mecklenburg County following the Ferguson, Missouri, grand jury decision and the riots that followed.
Photos: Scenes from Ferguson
"I think what it does is speaks to the frustration that has been built up in the African-American community for years," said Willie Ratchford, who heads the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Community Relations Committee.
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The decision in Ferguson was both disappointing and expected for many in the African-American community, he said.
"Some folks are thinking, 'OK, here we go again,'" Ratchford said.
That frustration boiled over in Durham, North Carolina, where the state NAACP called for a federal investigation into the Ferguson case.
"Our theories about racial disparities in the criminal justice system are not fragments of people's imagination, but rooted in reality," said NAACP President William Barber.
In Charlotte, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Officer Randall Kerrick is still awaiting trial for shooting and killing Jonathan Ferrell, who was unarmed.
That case provoked racial tensions locally that Ratchford said still simmer below the surface.
Events in Ferguson make them harder to ignore.
"Situations like this always pull the scabs off of old wounds," Ratchford said. "I think this causes us to realize that there is still much work to be done. I'm hoping people will see this as an impetus to have real substantial and honest dialogue about race indifference."
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