Keith Lamont Scott's Death

Overview

Keith Lamont Scott was a 43-year-old African American man who was fatally shot by police officers in Charlotte, North Carolina in late September 2016. While police and several witnesses claimed that Scott refused to drop a handgun prior to being shot, his sister and daughter claimed he was in his car reading a book, leading to protests and riots in the area orchestrated by Black Lives Matter activists.

Background

On September 20th, 2016, police were called to the Village at College Downs apartment complex to search for a man with outstanding warrants. At the location, police claim Scott was seen exiting his vehicle with a handgun and refused to drop the weapon after being confronted, leading one officer to fatally shoot him.

Developments

Family's Response

That day, Scott's family members claimed he did not have a gun and was reading a book while waiting for his son to get home from school. At the scene of the incident, Scott's daughter recorded a live Facebook stream, where she repeatedly claimed her father did not have a gun while yelling obscenities at police officers (shown below). Additionally, his brother claimed the police did not identify themselves and were not in uniform.^[2]

Officer Identified

That day, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department identified the police officer involved in the shooting as Brently Vinson (shown below). Following the announcement, many noted that Vinson himself was African American in online discussions about whether the incident was racially motivated.

Protests and Riots

That evening, Black Lives Matter activists organized protests in Charlotte, which blocked Interstate 85. After police were called to the scene, violent confrontations erupted between demonstrators and police, who claimed rioters were looting and setting vehicles on fire.

On September 21st, several violent confrontations occurred at Black Lives Matter demonstrations, where seven police officers and two civilians were hospitalized. Some reporters claimed to have been harassed and assaulted by rioters and several businesses were looted. That day, the Rebel Pundit YouTube channel posted a video in which a CNN reporter is shoved to the ground by a man walking by (shown below).

Gun Photographs

Following the incident, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney claimed they did not find a book at the scene of the shooting, but did recover a handgun. A photographs of the gun weresubsequently released to the local news stations on September 21st (shown below). Additionally, Putney revealed that several witnesses corroborated that a Scott was wielding a weapon.

Ruling

On November 30th, Mecklenburg County District Attorney R. Andrew Murray held a press conference announcing that the police killing of Scott was justified based on the "totality of the circumstances." He also announced that no charges would be pressed on Officer Vinson.^[4] The Scott family released a statement expressing "profound disappointment" at the decision, but urged those who may feel angry to protest peacefully and work to fix a "broken system" (shown below).^[6] According to Romper,^[5] the internet reaction was muted, as many had come to expect that no charges would be filed based on the history of events like this.

Search Interest

External References