Amid anxiety and unease over the police shooting of a black man, demonstrations in Charlotte have gone from violent to peaceful, although demands to see video of the encounter remain at the forefront of discussions for those taking to the streets.
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“I stated throughout the process that I was unwilling to deviate from that stance”, Putney said. He said the link should be available to the media Saturday evening.
Community activists have been for days calling on Putney to release body cam and dashcam video of the shooting of 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott.
Chief Kerr Putney of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department announced earlier this morning the footage involving the death of Keith Lamont Scott would be made public as he had decided the release would not hinder an ongoing investigation of the shooting. “The family of Mr. Scott has called for the tapes to be released to the public, it’s strains credibility for the mayor and the police chief to say they believe in transaparency but yet do not display this recording”.
Armed National Guard troops stood by as the protest worked its way along the city’s streets – with a curfew set to come into force at midnight local time, 6am GMT.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police chief Kerr Putney said Friday that he would wait until there is a “compelling reason” to release the video..
He addressed reporters hours after several hundred demonstrators took to the street for a fifth day and marched around downtown Charlotte. A diverse crowd of a couple of hundred people marched from Marshall Park after a short rally.
Now, Charlotte police have done just that. Scott then exited the vehicle with the gun and backed away from his auto while continuing to ignore commands to drop his gun.
“He doesn’t have a gun”. The video depicts the confrontation between Scott and CMPD police in the parking lot of an apartment complex – beginning with the officers’ approach of Scott’s vehicle, and ending with Scott’s fall to the pavement after a burst of gunfire from police. Don’t you do it. Keith! The video does not have a direct view of the shooting, however, and fails to show whether it was justified. Gunshots are heard as Rakeyia Scott says again, “Don’t you do it”. She also tells him, “don’t do it”, but it’s not clear what she means. “He better not be (expletive) dead”. Two women offered to register people to vote.
They initially did not believe Scott to be a priority and police said that they resumed warrant operation, but a short time later an officer saw Scott hold up a gun. His family has said he didn’t have a gun. “They see the gun and they think they need to”, Putney said. Some have said the shape is a weapon. The source said the blood most likely got on the gun after the shooting.
He added that DNA evidence would also be released. He has a TBI [Traumatic Brain Injury].
“My understanding (is) that he had had an accident a year ago that was pretty traumatic, and as a result, made him at least disabled in some particular instances (and was) taking medication for it”, Curry said.
Curry said he doesn’t expect Rakeyia Scott to speak publicly soon.
Central to the protests are the differing accounts between police and Scott’s family over what led to his death. The officers stand over Scott. Police said no book was found at the scene. Vinson was not carrying a body camera, police said.
A lawyer for the family added: “There’s nothing in that video that shows him acting aggressively, threatening or maybe unsafe”. Officer Vinson fired his issued serve weapon, striking Mr. Scott.
The police chief has said the video does not provide “definitive visual evidence” that Scott pointed a gun at officers.
“I have been assured by the State Bureau of Investigation that the release will have no material impact on the independent investigation since most of the known witnesses have been interviewed”, he wrote.
Meanwhile, a photo obtained by CNN affiliate WSOC-TV shows the immediate aftermath of the shooting, a source close to the investigation told CNN.
A later crime scene investigation found that Scott’s gun was loaded and that he had been wearing an ankle holster.
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In a statement, North Carolina Gov. That law is set to take effect in October.
