N.Charleston officers shoots unarmed man in 8x in the back
Apr 7, 2015 22:18:57 GMT
jhooked and pesci like this
Post by mpl92 on Apr 7, 2015 22:18:57 GMT
The officer has been arrested and charged with murder
South Carolina Officer I Charged With Murder in
lack Man’ Death
MICHAL S. SCHMIDT and MATT APUZZO APRIL 7, 2015
WASHINGTON — A white police officer has been charged with murder, the
mayor of North Charleston, S.C., said Tuesday, after a video surfaced showing
him shooting and killing an apparently unarmed black man in the back while
he ran away.
The officer, Michael T. Slager, had said he feared for his life because the
man took his stun gun in a scuffle after a traffic stop on Saturday. A video,
however, shows the officer firing eight times as the man fled. The state charges
were announced in a news conference Tuesday evening.
The shooting in North Charleston comes on the heels of highprofile
incidents of police officers using lethal force in New York, Cleveland,
Ferguson, Mo., and elsewhere around the country. The deaths have sparked a
national debate over whether police are too quick to use force, particularly in
cases involving black men.
A White House task force has recommended a host of changes to the
nation’s police policies, and President Obama dispatched Attorney General
Eric H. Holder Jr., to cities around the country to try to improve police
relations with minority neighborhoods.
North Charleston is the state’s thirdlargest city with a population of
about 100,000. AfricanAmericans make up about 47 percent of residents, and
whites account for about 37 percent. The city police department is about 80
4/7/2015 South Carolina Officer Is Charged With Murder in Black Man’s Death NYTimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2015/04/08/us/southcarolinaofficerischargedwithmurderinblackmansdeath.html?smid=twbna&_r=0 2/2
percent white, according to data collected by the Justice Department in 2007,
the most recent period available.
The shooting unfolded after Officer Slager stopped a MercedesBenz with
a broken taillight, according to police reports. The driver, Walter L. Scott, 50,
ran away, and Officer Slager chased him into a grassy lot that abuts a muffler
shop. He fired his Taser, an electronic stun gun, but it did not stop Mr. Scott,
according to police reports.
Moments later, Officer Slager reported on his radio, “Shots fired and the
subject is down. He took my Taser,” according to police reports.
But the video, which was taken by a bystander and provided to The New
York Times by Mr. Scott’s lawyer, presents a different account. The video
begins in the vacant lot, apparently moments after Officer Slager fired his
Taser. Wires, which carry the electrical current from the stun gun, appear to be
extending from Mr. Scott’s body as the two men tussle and Mr. Scott turns to
run.
Something — it is not clear whether it is the stun gun — is either tossed or
knocked to the ground behind the two men and Officer Slager draws his gun,
the video shows. When the officer fires, Mr. Scott appears to be 15 to 20 feet
away and fleeing. He falls after the last of eight shots.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the state’s criminal
investigative body, is investigating the shooting. The Justice Department,
which has opened a string of civil rights investigations into police departments
under Mr. Holder, is also reviewing the shooting.
www.nytimes.com/2015/04/08/us/south-carolina-officer-is-charged-with-murder-in-black-mans-death.html?smid=tw-bna&_r=0
South Carolina Officer I Charged With Murder in
lack Man’ Death
MICHAL S. SCHMIDT and MATT APUZZO APRIL 7, 2015
WASHINGTON — A white police officer has been charged with murder, the
mayor of North Charleston, S.C., said Tuesday, after a video surfaced showing
him shooting and killing an apparently unarmed black man in the back while
he ran away.
The officer, Michael T. Slager, had said he feared for his life because the
man took his stun gun in a scuffle after a traffic stop on Saturday. A video,
however, shows the officer firing eight times as the man fled. The state charges
were announced in a news conference Tuesday evening.
The shooting in North Charleston comes on the heels of highprofile
incidents of police officers using lethal force in New York, Cleveland,
Ferguson, Mo., and elsewhere around the country. The deaths have sparked a
national debate over whether police are too quick to use force, particularly in
cases involving black men.
A White House task force has recommended a host of changes to the
nation’s police policies, and President Obama dispatched Attorney General
Eric H. Holder Jr., to cities around the country to try to improve police
relations with minority neighborhoods.
North Charleston is the state’s thirdlargest city with a population of
about 100,000. AfricanAmericans make up about 47 percent of residents, and
whites account for about 37 percent. The city police department is about 80
4/7/2015 South Carolina Officer Is Charged With Murder in Black Man’s Death NYTimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2015/04/08/us/southcarolinaofficerischargedwithmurderinblackmansdeath.html?smid=twbna&_r=0 2/2
percent white, according to data collected by the Justice Department in 2007,
the most recent period available.
The shooting unfolded after Officer Slager stopped a MercedesBenz with
a broken taillight, according to police reports. The driver, Walter L. Scott, 50,
ran away, and Officer Slager chased him into a grassy lot that abuts a muffler
shop. He fired his Taser, an electronic stun gun, but it did not stop Mr. Scott,
according to police reports.
Moments later, Officer Slager reported on his radio, “Shots fired and the
subject is down. He took my Taser,” according to police reports.
But the video, which was taken by a bystander and provided to The New
York Times by Mr. Scott’s lawyer, presents a different account. The video
begins in the vacant lot, apparently moments after Officer Slager fired his
Taser. Wires, which carry the electrical current from the stun gun, appear to be
extending from Mr. Scott’s body as the two men tussle and Mr. Scott turns to
run.
Something — it is not clear whether it is the stun gun — is either tossed or
knocked to the ground behind the two men and Officer Slager draws his gun,
the video shows. When the officer fires, Mr. Scott appears to be 15 to 20 feet
away and fleeing. He falls after the last of eight shots.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the state’s criminal
investigative body, is investigating the shooting. The Justice Department,
which has opened a string of civil rights investigations into police departments
under Mr. Holder, is also reviewing the shooting.
www.nytimes.com/2015/04/08/us/south-carolina-officer-is-charged-with-murder-in-black-mans-death.html?smid=tw-bna&_r=0
