Federal prosecutors have decided not to bring charges in the in the deadly 2019 arrest of Black motorist Ronald Greene in north Louisiana.

Ronald Greene’s deadly arrest on a rural Louisiana roadside in 2019 sparked outrage after The Associated Press published long-suppressed body-camera video showing white state troopers stunning, beating and dragging the Black motorist as he wailed, “I’m scared!”.

Five Louisiana law enforcement officers have been charged with state crimes for their roles in the 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene, whose death authorities initially blamed on a car crash until The Associated Press published long-withheld body-camera video showing the Black motorist being stunned, beaten and dragged.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has denounced the deadly 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene as “regrettable,” criticizing the state troopers who repeatedly stunned, choked and punched the Black motorist.

FILE - In this Sept. 25, 2020 file photo, a heavy Louisiana State Police presence is seen at the New Chapel Hill Baptist Church during funeral services for Master Trooper Chris Hollingsworth in West Monroe, La. An Associated Press review of thousands of records has revealed multiple cases when Louisiana State troopers and some of their supervisors exchanged emails with casual, demeaning uses of the n-word. – A Black trooper with the Louisiana State Police was on a break when his cellphone buzzed with an unusual voice message. “I believe this to be an isolated incident and I have great confidence in the men and women who serve in the Louisiana State Police,” the agency’s outgoing head, Col. Kevin Reeves, said in response to the controversy. John Bel Edwards appointed a Black State Police captain, Lamar Davis, to succeed Reeves, who is white.

Greene died following a police chase in Louisiana in 2019, and his death is now under federal investigation. “This family has been lied to the entire time about what happened,” said civil rights attorney Lee Merritt, who also viewed the footage. Police initially told Greene’s family he had “died on impact” after crashing into a tree, the doctor wrote. Greene’s death, which followed a chase near Monroe over an unspecified traffic violation, was ruled accidental and attributed to cardiac arrest, said Renee Smith, the Union Parish coroner who was not in office when that determination was made. The State Police report refers to Greene crashing into a tree as the “the most harmful event” in the crash.

Officials originally said his injuries were caused by a car crash that ended a May 2019 police chase or an ensuing struggle with state troopers. He called on state officials to immediately release the full footage. Even after the trooper’s death, the State Police have refused to comment on Hollingsworth’s use of force or say which policies he was accused of violating in Greene’s arrest. Court records show he served more than a year in prison following a 2015 conviction for burglary and grand theft. The State Police crash report does indicate that alcohol and drug use was “suspected,” but it doesn’t indicate what the toxicology results were.

A Louisiana State Police motorcycle honor guard precedes the hearse carrying the body of Master Trooper Chris Hollingsworth, Friday, Sept. 25, 2020, in West Monroe, La. Police initially told Greene’s family he died from injuries in a crash but later acknowledged troopers “struggled” with him during the arrest. State Police have refused to release that letter or any details of how the highway crash occurred. Unlike other trooper deaths, Hollingsworth’s was not announced internally by the agency’s superintendent, Col. Kevin Reeves. “The Hollingsworth family has elected to have a private ceremony for family and friends and asks for privacy at this time,” said Lt. Nick Manale, a State Police spokesman.

(Michael M. Santiago/Pool via AP)A Louisiana state trooper has died following a single-vehicle highway crash that happened just hours after he learned he would be fired for his role last year in the in-custody death of a Black man. Authorities initially said Greene died after crashing his vehicle into a tree following a high-speed chase in rural northern Louisiana that began over an unspecified traffic violation. But Greene’s family alleges troopers used excessive force and “brutalized” him while taking him into custody. The controversy deepened last week when Greene’s family released graphic photographs showing deep bruises and cuts to his face, and other photos showing his car with little damage. State Police have said only that the 49-year-old Greene died “after resisting arrest and a struggle with troopers” who took him into custody.

A Louisiana state trooper has been critically injured in a single-vehicle crash hours after learning he faced firing for his role in the in-custody death of Greene in 2019. (Family photo via AP, File)A Louisiana state trooper was critically injured early Monday in a single-vehicle highway crash that came hours after learning he would be fired for his role last year in the in-custody death of a Black man. The crash Monday that critically wounded Hollingsworth happened along Interstate 20 in Monroe shortly before 3 a.m., just hours after the trooper received a letter Sunday of “intent for discipline,” said Capt. Greene's death also remains the subject of a civil rights investigation by the FBI and the U.S. Justice Department. He called for an investigation of “everybody up the chain of command” who had been aware of the agency's response to Greene's death.