Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.
In April 2015, an officer with the North Charleston, S.C. police department shot a man in the back as the citizen slowly ran away from the officer after an altercation.
In December 2016 the officer achieved a hung verdict in his murder trial after claiming he feared for his life after a struggle for his taser. He was facing a retrial at state level.
On May 3, 2017, the officer plead guilty to the federal crime of violating the man’s civil rights. He will be sentenced later.
Justice takes time, sometimes.
After you watch the video below and read my description of the incident, you will appreciate two questions that come to mind. For background, consider I am a middle-class, middle-age, white male, who runs my own business.
Here are the two distressing questions I’ve been pondering for the past two years:
- How often did this type of incident take place in the past, when nobody had a video recorder in their pocket?
- How often does this type of incident take place today?
A Wall Street Journal article provides background on the plea and the case: Former S.C. Policeman Pleads Guilty in Shooting of Walter Scott. The officer was fired immediately after the incident. The city apologized and reached a $6.5M settlement with the family.
If you have the stomach for it, feel free to watch the following video:
Please know in advance it is upsetting.
My observations:
Posted by Jim Ulvog 
