Governor will not remove prosecutor in Michael Brown case

On Tuesday, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon (D) announced he will not replace the head prosecutor in the Michael Brown case.

Several community leaders, including St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley, asked Nixon to remove prosecutor Robert McCulloch, whose "past has been suspect to the African-American community, quite frankly," Dooley told MSNBC. Several critics say McCulloch has extremely close ties to local police, and is biased due to the fact that his father, a police officer, was killed in the line of duty in 1964 by an African-American man. Through a spokesman, McCulloch said he does not intend to step down.

In a statement, Nixon said, "From the outset, I have been clear in the need to have a vigorous prosecution of this case, and that includes minimizing any potential legal uncertainty. There is a well-established process by which prosecutors can recuse themselves from a pending investigation, and a special prosecutor be appointed. Departing from this established process could unnecessarily inject legal uncertainty into this matter and potentially jeopardize the prosecution."

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During his address, Nixon spoke about various aspects of the situation in Ferguson, and pointed out some positives. "Amid all the pain, distrust, and anger we've also seen tremendous acts of grace, courage, and kindness as the people of Ferguson try to maintain peace while they call for justice for the family of Michael Brown," he said. Listen to Nixon's entire address below. --Catherine Garcia