Three Baltimore Police officers who shot and killed a teenager last year will not face charges, the Maryland Office of the Attorney General said Wednesday.

The teenager, 17-year-old William Gardner, was shot a dozen times by officers on Aug. 5 2024, and pronounced dead at the scene near North Stricker Street in Southwest Baltimore. His death prompted outcry from residents and community advocates who said they viewed the killing as the latest case of excessive force against a young Black man.

The Attorney General’s Independent Investigations Division determined that none of the three officers involved in the shooting — Detectives Devon Lomax, Shariff Kellogg, and Thomas Smith — “committed a crime under Maryland law,” according to a press release. The IID, which investigates all fatal police incidents in the state, concluded its investigation on June 5.

In August 2024, detectives Lomax, Kellogg, and Smith were patrolling near North Stricker Street when they encountered a group of teenagers, according to police.

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When officers approached them, the teenagers dispersed. Police said Gardner showed “characteristics of an armed person” and ran from them.

Police body camera footage shows two officers screamed at Gardner from their vehicle while he ran. Police ordered him to “get on the ground.”

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“I will shoot you,” one officer said.

According to a statement by the Maryland Office of the Attorney General, Lomax left the police vehicle and grabbed Gardner by the arm. Gardner then raised a firearm at Kellogg and Smith.

Kellog, Smith and Lomax fired as many as 21 shots at Gardner, according to authorities.

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The Maryland Office of the Attorney General initially declined to identify Gardner after the shooting, citing juvenile privacy laws, but he was later identified by police.

Police Commissioner Richard Worley said at the time that the shooting was “truly a tragic incident.”

Taavon Bazemore, who lives and works in the neighborhood, told the Associated Press at the time that the officers’ response was “overkill.”

“Y’all using a whole lot of force for no reason,” he said. “He shouldn’t have a gun, but that don’t give you the right to kill him.”

There was a makeshift memorial with tea light candles, balloons and handwritten messages on the corner where Gardner died. Peggy Kallon, who ran a corner store in the neighborhood, told the Associated Press at the time she was heartbroken.

“He was a good kid,” she said. “Seventeen years old and they just shot him like that. … I’m speechless.”