Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has announced an additional presence of National Guardsmen to the region after last night's violent protests in Ferguson, Missouri.

"The guards rapid response teams will be positioned to be ready to act at a moment's notice if challenges arise. All together, that will be more than 2,200 National Guardsmen in the region," Nixon said during a press conference at the University of St. Louis.

Nixon expressed disgust in the violent acts and said it was unacceptable that "seniors are afraid to leave the house, school cancelled, kids scared to go outside and play."

Attorneys for the family of Michael Brown, the 18-year-old shot to death by officer Darren Wilson in August, condemned as biased the grand jury process that led to Monday's decision not to bring criminal charges against Wilson.

About a dozen Ferguson buildings burned overnight and 61 people were arrested on charges including burglary, illegal weapons possession and unlawful assembly, police said. Police said protesters fired guns at them, lit patrol cars on fire and hurled bricks into their lines. Police fired tear gas and flash-bang canisters at protesters and shops were looted.

The killing in Ferguson, a predominantly black city with a white-dominated power structure, underscores the sometimes tense nature of U.S. race relations. The St. Louis County grand jury's decision also led to protests in other major U.S. cities. The unrest came despite calls by President Barack Obama and others for police and protesters to exercise restraint.

The grand jury decision shifts the legal spotlight to the ongoing U.S. Justice Department investigation into whether Wilson violated Brown's civil rights by intentionally using excessive force and whether Ferguson police systematically violate people's rights by using excessive force or discrimination.