Student charged after nooses found outside middle school

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — A student has been charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct after three nooses were found on the campus of a suburban Chicago middle school.

The boy, whose name was not released, has not been charged with a hate crime.

Evanston police said Wednesday that the Cook County state’s attorney’s office reviewed the evidence and declined to add a hate crime charge “because the actions and motive of the involved juvenile did not meet the legal, statutory elements of a hate crime."

The nooses were found hanging May 13 from a tree in Haven Middle School's recess area in Evanston following a student-staged sit-in protesting staffing changes.

Witness interviews, surveillance footage and cellphone videos led to the identification of the student responsible for the nooses, police said.