U.S. attorney: Nooses, beating (of white boy) at Jena High not related

JENA, Louisiana (CNN) -- There is no link between the nooses hung by white students outside a Louisiana high school and the alleged beating of a white student by black teens, according to the U.S. attorney who reviewed investigations into the incidents.

The events, though likely symptoms of racial tension, were separate incidents, said Donald Washington, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Louisiana.

The events occurred three months apart last year in Jena, Louisiana.

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White boy who was beaten

Negra footballer Mychal Bell

He (negra Bell above) and the other five members of the Jena 6 -- all of them African-Americans -- were initially charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder in connection with the December 4 beating.

Many said they are angry the six black students, dubbed the "Jena 6," are being treated more harshly than the white students who hung the nooses.

Some residents say nooses hung from a tree on campus sparked the violence that landed the Jena 6 in jail.