Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes announced Monday he will seek an Indictment against the police officer who killed unarmed 19 year old Timothy Stansbury this weekend. The officer is white and Mr. Stansbury was black.

The teenager, Timothy Stansbury Jr., 19, had no weapons, and witnesses have said that no words were exchanged before the officer, Richard S. Neri Jr., fired his gun. Officer Neri has made statements suggesting he was startled to see Mr. Stansbury as the officer and his partner opened the roof door on a routine patrol of the Louis Armstrong Houses in Bedford-Stuyvesant, according to a person who was briefed about his account.

DA Hynes said he would seek a charge of criminally negligent homicide, and perhaps the more serious one of second-degree manslaughter.

Criminally negligent homicide is a Class E felony in which the guilty party need not be aware of the potential risk of his actions. It carries a maximum sentence of four years. The more serious charge being weighed, second-degree manslaughter, is a Class C felony in which the guilty party is aware of the risk but recklessly disregards it. It carries a maximum sentence of 15 years.

The officer's lawyer says he may have his client testify before the grand jury. Investigators speculate the officer was startled and pulled the trigger by accident.

Still, several police officials said that officers were trained to keep their finger away from the trigger, even if their gun is drawn.

Then there's that familiar blue wall of silence:

One senior investigator said Officer Neri's partner has told investigators that at the critical moments of the shooting, his view of Officer Neri was blocked.