Ferguson grand jury reaches decision on Darren Wilson Tensions in Ferguson, Missouri and the surrounding region remain high in anticipation of a verdict from the grand jury in the shooting death of Michael Brown. UPDATE: MISSOURI governor Jay Nixon has urged tolerance, respect and restraint ahead of the announcement by the Ferguson grand jury over the police shooting death of Michael Brown. A US grand jury has reached a decision on whether or not to charge white police officer Darren Wilson for shooting dead the unarmed black teenager and is due to deliver the ruling within hours. Plead for calm ... Missouri Governor Jay Nixon calls for restraint St Louis mayor Francis Slay looks on. The racially divided St Louis suburb is currently on a knife edge, with Governor Nixon calling for calm and peace ahead of the ruling over the August 9 shooting. A decision is now expected at 8pm St Louis time (1pm AEDT). As Nixon spoke, crowds of protesters gathered outside the Ferguson police department, chanting: "Indict that cop!" and "No justice, no peace!" Angry demonstrators formed a human chain across an intersection, blocking vehicles from getting through, CNN reported. Awaiting his fate ... Darren Wilson finds out today if he will stand trial over the killing. Fate sealed ... Michael Brown, 18, was shot dead by police officer Darren Wilson. Tension mounting ... Protestors bearing a banner that said "Black lives matter" marched through the streets of Ferguson. Nixon told a media conference that authorities were working to "protect lives, protect property and protect free speech." He said state and local law enforcement were working hand-in-hand. The National Guard was on hand at critical facilities, he said. St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley said either way, the decision was going to cause trauma and possibly conflict. "Now is the time to show the world that we can act without being destructive," he said. He urged people to think with their heads, and not with their emotions. "I do not want people in this community to think they need to barricade their doors and take up arms," he said. Anticipation ... Satellite trucks convene outside the Buzz Westfall Justice Center in Clayton, Missouri, where a grand jury has been considering whether to indict a white Ferguson police officer who shot and killed an 18-year-old black teenager. Wilson could be indicted for first or second degree murder, or manslaughter - or the grand jury could decide that he acted in self-defence and that there is no need for him to go on trial. As they awaited today's decision, the family of Michael Brown asked for four-and-a-half minutes of silence before protests begin. The time period is a reference to the approximately four hours the teen's body lay in the street after he was shot. Police only arrived at the scene of the shooting 90 minutes after the teen was gunned down, an investigation by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch found. When a hearse later arrived, an angry crowd had gathered and it was too dangerous to get the body, authorities said, and a SWAT team was called in. The shooting triggered riots and looting that captured international attention, and police responded with armored vehicles and tear gas. Many in the area thought a grand jury decision on whether to charge Wilson with a crime would be announced on Sunday, based partly on a stepped-up police presence in the preceding days, including the setting up of barricades around the building where the panel was meeting. Taking no chances ... Workers install fencing around a petrol station in Ferguson in anticipation of violent protests after the grand jury decision is handed down. Downtown STL Inc, a St Louis civic group that promotes downtown businesses, told members in an email on Saturday that the grand jury would reconvene on Monday to continue deliberating. The email did not explain how the group knew that, and St Louis County Prosecutor Bob McCulloch's office has not commented on the grand jury's schedule. Tensions running high ... police officers secure an area around where a grand jury has been considering whether to indict Darren Wilson. Mr McCulloch has said he expected a grand jury decision by mid-to-late November, and it'll be up to him to publicise it. But that's not ultimately in his control. The 12-person grand jury deliberates in secret, without Mr McCulloch, and sets its own schedule depending upon when the members are available. Save Ferguson ... The region is on edge in antcipation of today's announcement. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel) Source: AP There is no indication yet as to whether or not officer Darren Wilson will face charges for the death of Michael Brown on August 9, 2014. Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Brown's family, said they are frustrated the prosecutor didn't charge Wilson himself, or at least suggest a charge to grand jurors. As it is, "you don't have any direction, you're just putting all the evidence out there and you're going to let them figure it out and they can make up their own minds," Mr Crump said. You know, it just boggles the mind why he thinks this is fair. If jurors meet on Monday, there is no guarantee they will reach a decision that day, or even this week. It's not uncommon for deliberations to take a while in complex cases when, such as in the Brown shooting, self-defence is alleged or there are two widely conflicting versions of events, said Cole County Prosecutor Mark Richardson, who is not involved in the Ferguson case. Protests ... demonstrators shout slogans during a march in St Louis, Missouri, on November 23. Originally published as The city living on a razor's edge