The U.S. Justice Department has slammed recent leaks from the investigation into the shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown on August 9, 2014.

An official from the DOJ told the Los Angeles Times that the leaks were “irresponsible and highly troubling.” The source added that “there seems to be an inappropriate effort to influence public opinion about this case.”

As a St. Louis County grand jury considers charges against Officer Darren Wilson for fatally shooting Brown, a series of leaks from the investigation have once again placed the case in the national spotlight.

According to Reuters, an autopsy report obtained by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch revealed Wednesday that Brown’s hand was shot at close range. This indicates, according to forensic experts interviewed by the newspaper, that the 18 year old’s hand was close to the officer’s weapon at some point during the altercation.

While the autopsy seemed to lend credence to Wilson’s side of the story, others weren’t convinced that the report justified all of Wilson’s actions.

“Several independent witnesses indicated there was a brief altercation between Michael Brown and Officer Wilson at the patrol car,” Brown family attorney Benjamin Crump said in a statement obtained by the Los Angeles Times. “What we want to know is why Officer Wilson shot Michael Brown multiple times and killed him even though he was more than 20 feet away from his patrol car; this is the crux of the matter!”

Reuters points out that Brown was eventually shot six times, dying approximately 30 feet away from Wilson’s police car.