Wife's recording of face-off aired

In Charlotte video, she cries: ‘Has no weapon. Don’t shoot’

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney and Charlotte, N.C., Mayor Jennifer Roberts discuss protests and the investigation into Tuesday’s fatal shooting by police of Keith Lamont Scott during a news conference Friday.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney and Charlotte, N.C., Mayor Jennifer Roberts discuss protests and the investigation into Tuesday’s fatal shooting by police of Keith Lamont Scott during a news conference Friday.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The wife of a man fatally shot by police earlier this week recorded part of the encounter, and video that was released Friday captured her pleading with officers not to fire at her husband.

This video footage was the first glimpse of what happened before and after a shooting that has inflamed Charlotte and prompted intense, sometimes violent protests. The 2½-minute recording emerged as city officials have refused to release police video showing an officer shooting and killing Keith Lamont Scott, a 43-year-old black man.

The recording, taken by Scott's wife on a cellphone, did not capture the shooting, but instead shows an officer aiming a gun at an unseen Scott while police yell at him to drop his gun.

In the video, Rakeyia Scott can be heard yelling to the officers that her husband did not have a gun.

"Don't shoot him," she said. "Don't shoot him. He has no weapon. He has no weapon. Don't shoot him."

[Read about recent fatal shootings by police across the country.]

She then urges Scott to get out of the car and repeatedly says, "Don't you do it," until multiple gunshots are heard. At this point, the camera is facing the ground.

"Did you shoot him? He better not [expletive] be dead," she yells, hurrying closer to the scene on a tree-lined street.

When she gets nearer to the scene, at least four officers are seen gathered around someone who is down on the street. Two of the officers were kneeling over the person on the ground.

Broadcaster NBC News first published this video Friday afternoon, and attorneys for Scott's family released it to other media outlets.

Representatives for the Police Department and the mayor's office did not immediately return emails seeking comment.

Uncertainty about the case prompted a fourth night of demonstrations through Charlotte's business district.

After darkness fell, dozens of people carried signs and chanted to urge police to release dashboard and body-camera video that could show more clearly what happened. Police have said Scott was armed, but witnesses say he held only a book.

Protesters called on police to release the video of the shooting earlier this week. Marchers at the front of the group carried a banner that read "Just Release the Tapes."

Police have said they have no immediate plans to release their two recordings of the shooting, which inflamed Charlotte and led to days of intense, sometimes violent protests in the city. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney said Friday that there is footage from at least one police body camera and one dashboard camera.

Authorities have said officers encountered Scott because they were searching for another man, who had an outstanding warrant. According to police, officers saw Scott get out of a car with a handgun and get back into it, and they ordered him to get out and drop the weapon. Police say he posed a deadly threat and refused to drop the gun.

Scott's relatives, including his wife, watched the police videos on Thursday, according to their attorneys, and came away with "more questions than answers."

The footage released Friday came after a relatively calm night, as two nights of violent protests gave way to largely peaceful demonstrations that stretched into the early morning.

Putney said Friday that releasing the footage of Scott's death could inflame the situation. He has said previously that the video will be made public when he believes there is a "compelling reason" to do so.

"It's a personal struggle, but I have to do what I think is best for my community," Putney said.

During the same news conference, Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts said she believes the video should be released, but "the question is on the timing."

Earlier in the week, the Charlotte protests turned violent, with demonstrators attacking reporters and others, setting fires and smashing windows of hotels, office buildings and restaurants.

Forty-four people were arrested after Wednesday's protests, and one protester who was shot died at the hospital Thursday. City officials said police did not shoot 26-year-old Justin Carr. On Friday morning, police announced that Rayquan Borum, 21, was arrested and charged in the killing.

Information for this article was contributed by Cleve R. Wootson Jr., Mark Berman, Lindsey Bever and Katie Zezima of The Washington Post and by Meg Kinnard, Jonathan Drew and staff members of The Associated Press.

A Section on 09/24/2016

Upcoming Events