Keith Lamont Scott's Death

Keith Lamont Scott's Death

Part of a series on Police Brutality Controversies. [View Related Entries]

Updated Dec 01, 2016 at 01:54PM EST by Adam.

Added Sep 22, 2016 at 01:28PM EDT by Don.

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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.


Joe Bruno @JoeBrunoWSOC9 Foltow BREAKING: CMPD sources confirm this photo I obtained of the shooting aftermath shows the weapon Keith Scott was holding @wsoctv 6:03 PM - 21 Sep 2016 1,364 1,056 Molly Grantham WBTV @MollyGrantham Follow #BREAKING: From a #CMPD source. "This is the gun police recovered at the #KeithLamontScott scene." 8:06 PM - 21 Sep 2016 わ다 119 (963

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.


Yamiche Alcindor Follow @Yamiche The family of #KeithLamontScott just released this statement. We wish to express our thanks and gratitude to Mecklenburg County District Attorney Andrew Murray, his office and the SBI for the respect they have shown the Scott family and for their willingness to explain how they conducted their investigation and the conclusions they reached. We are profoundly disappointed in their decision not to criminally charge Officer Brantley Vinson for his actions in taking the life of Keith Lamont Scott. While we understand that many in the Charlotte area share our frustration and pain, we ask that everyone work together to fix the system that allowed this tragedy to happen in the first place. All our family wanted was justice and for these members of law enforcement to understand that what they did was wrong We respectfully ask that you please keep any protests that may occur peaceful. Responding to violence with violence is never an appropriate response. This is just one more step in our quest for justice. - End of Statement RETWEETS LIKES 80 143 12:29 PM 30 Nov 2016 わ3 2.143 80

Search Interest

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Top Comments

(((Richard Cheese; 妹妹 Master)))
(((Richard Cheese; 妹妹 Master)))

>Man pointing gun at officers gets shot
BLM protest
>Even though many witnesses said he was threatening them with the gun, his two relatives said he was reading a book
BLM riots
>Turns out the officer who shot him was black
BLM starts violent assaults

Jesus Christ the more the narrative is tarnished the angrier they get.

+128

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