Hoisington said he needs time to review SLED's 350-page report on the Nov. 7 shooting, which was delivered to his office Wednesday afternoon. Another copy of the report will go to the FBI, which is conducting a separate probe of the case, he said.

After reviewing the document, Hoisington said, he may interview additional witnesses before making a decision on the shooting.

"I imagine that could delay things a bit, but I'm going to try to (reach a decision) soon after the new year," he said. "I want to be fair to all parties."

North Charleston police say an officer shot Wylder, a mentally ill black man, twice after he shoplifted a pack of meat from a Rivers Avenue grocery store, tried to rob another business and then stabbed another officer who was trying to arrest him. The officer wore a protective vest and was not injured.

Several witnesses, however, say that Wylder, 41, was shot a second time by police after he was handcuffed and beaten by officers. The day after the shooting, Police Chief Jon Zumalt called those witness statements "fabrications."

If he finds police were justified, Hoisington said, he will say so. If, however, he cannot reach that conclusion, he said he will refer the case to state Attorney General Henry McMaster.

Hoisington used that approach last week when he opted not to rule on whether Goose Creek police should be prosecuted for drawing guns and handcuffing students during a controversial drug raid at Stratford High School on Nov. 5. He referred that case to McMaster's office.

Spencer Pryor, a North Charleston police spokesman, said the department has not received a copy of SLED's report. Police will defer comment until Hoisington issues his decision, he said.

Hoisington said the report contains statements from 37 witnesses, crime scene documentation, Wylder's mental health and criminal histories, procedural documents and other information. Like other SLED reports into officer-involved shootings, the document contains findings and facts, but does not offer conclusions. He would not provide a copy of the report to The Post and Courier.

Kathryn Richardson, a SLED spokeswoman, declined to comment.

Stephen Grimaldi, special agent in charge of the FBI in Charleston, said he had not received a copy of the report, but was expecting one. With the report, the FBI should be able to wrap up its preliminary investigation into the shooting and send the results to the U.S. Justice Department's civil rights section for review, he said.

North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey requested the Justice Department probe to quell any suspicions of a cover-up.

In a preliminary probe, FBI agents gather police incidents reports, coroner reports and other documents for civil rights prosecutors to examine. The civil rights section then decides whether the case warrants a more intensive probe.

"They just look at the basic facts and make an assessment whether the case needs to move forward to a more formal investigation," Grimaldi said.

In the 2002 fiscal year, the Justice Department opened 2,159 civil rights investigations, resulting in 179 convictions, Grimaldi said. Of the 10,000 complaints the civil rights section receives on average each year, only about 1 percent warrant prosecution, he said.

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