PITTSBURGH -- The U.S. Department of Justice says two state police troopers involved in a child's shooting death nearly two years ago won't face criminal charges.

Michael Ellerbe, 12, was hit in the back while running from troopers who were chasing a stolen sport utility vehicle in Uniontown on Dec. 24, 2002.

In a statement released Monday, U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan said there is not enough evidence to support charges against troopers Samuel Nassan and Juan Curry.

"The government is required to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the police officers used force willfully -- that is, deliberately, and with knowledge that they had no justification," said the statement. "The evidence in this case does not support a finding of willful or deliberate misconduct."

At a coroner's hearing in January 2003, Curry testified that his gun accidentally went off as he climbed a fence during the chase, and Nassan testified that he fired at Ellerbe because he thought Curry had been shot.

"The evidence in this case indicates that the troopers believed that Michael Ellerbe may have had a gun, and that the trooper who fired the fatal shot believed that Michael Ellerbe had shot at his partner first," according to Buchanan's statement. "Although the results of the investigation indicated that both of these beliefs turned out to be erroneous, there was evidence indicating that these beliefs were held in good faith."

Attorney Joel Sansone, who has been representing Ellerbe's father in a wrongful death lawsuit, did not immediately return a message from the Associated Press seeking comment.

In May 2003, Sansone claimed police were covering up the Ellerbe shooting and said he found several witnesses who could back up his allegation.