Ferguson demonstrators set fire to American flag outside police department in another restless night of protests

• Stars and Stripes was set alight Saturday night in the Missouri town
• Youths gathered around after nights of chaos on the streets
• Came as officer Darren Wilson, who killed Michael Brown, resigned

By Kieran Corcoran for MailOnline

Published: 00:08 EST, 30 November 2014 | Updated: 00:08 EST, 30 November 2014

Protesters in Ferguson have set an American flag ablaze in another night of protests over the shooting of teenager Michael Brown and the clearing of the officer who killed him.

A group of youths crowded round outside the Ferguson Police Department's headquarters as one of their number held the burning flag above a drain grate.

It came amid continuing discontent in the Missouri town after a grand jury decided not to indict Darren Wilson, the officer who fatally shot Michael Brown, 18, on August 9 this year.

Burning: A youth waves a burning Stars and Stripes as other protesters look on and film the event

It was announced Saturday that, despite the decision not to try him for any crime, Wilson had nonetheless resigned his commission with the police department.

The officer said he had given up on law enforcement so that the community could 'heal' after his actions ultimately caused national outcry and night of looting and fires.

Burning the United States flag was for a time illegal in almost every state, but the Supreme Court overturned all such laws in 1989 after deciding it is protected by the First Amendment.

The extreme act of protest follows demonstrations up and down the country, in which many have said the fallout from the shooting makes them ashamed to be Americans.

The flaming flag was part of wider unrest in the town. Stephen Deere, a reporter with the St Louis Post-Dispatch said that a jeep driving through the town had been shot at near Ferguson City Hall.

Activists have now launched a week-long march to demand sweeping police reforms.

On Saturday, a core group of about 100 marchers, many from other states, set out on a 120-mile 'Journey for Justice', from Ferguson to the Missouri state capital Jefferson City.

The marchers, organized by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), are demanding the sacking of the Ferguson police chief, nationwide police reforms and an end to racial profiling.

The peaceful march came after 15 protesters were arrested late Friday outside the Ferguson police department and after demonstrators shut down a shopping mall in St Louis, demanding a boycott of post-Thanksgiving shopping.

Monday's announcement that Wilson will not face charges sparked looting, arson and gunfire in parts of Ferguson, a mainly black suburb with a mostly white police force.

The NAACP wants police to use body cameras, changes to the system of equipping police with military hardware, a promotion of diversity on the force and an end to the use of major force in cases involving minor offenses.

A federal probe into whether Wilson violated Brown's civil rights is ongoing.