Walter Scott's murder by a South Carolina police officer

[telemann.livejournal.com]

CNN - In both cases, a white police officer kills an unarmed black man. But the outcomes so far have been wildly different. So what's changed between the shooting deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and of Walter Scott in North Charleston, South Carolina? Here are some of the stark differences in the cases, the lessons learned by both police and the public and concrete changes that could help mend tensions in the future.

Video footage:
It's unlikely North Charleston police Officer Michael Slager would have been fired and charged with murder so quickly if not for video shot by witness Feidin Santana. Even North Charleston's police chief said he was disgusted by the footage of Scott's shooting."I watched the video, and I was sickened by what I saw," Chief Eddie Driggers said. "I have not watched it since."

Not only does the video show Slager firing eight shots at Scott as he is running away, it also shows Slager picking up a dark-colored object that had fallen to the ground and later placing a dark object next to Slager's lifeless body. That could be significant because Slager initially said Scott had taken his Taser stun gun and feared for his life. But if investigators determine the object dropped next to Scott's body was actually the Taser, Slager could be accused of planting evidence.

The takeaway: Ferguson resident Alexis Templeton said what happened in her city helped people across the country to feel empowered to stand up for themselves. And that includes having the courage to film police in tense situations. "Now people have phones," she said. "People aren't scared to hold police accountable."The video of the North Charleston shooting, she said, is vital. If there is no video, folks don't believe it because it sounds so asinine that something like this would ever happen in this country, she said. "But with a video, you can't say it's not happening."

Source

Comments

[hardblue.livejournal.com]

No video, no crime. It makes you think of all those years before the widespread availability of video, not to mention all the situations today in which there is nobody around with their cameras.

[telemann.livejournal.com]

My hunch that this cop was likely guilty of some previous shenanigans, seems to have been on the mark.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/09/michael-slager-excessive-force_n_7032212.html

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

"It could have been prevented," Givens said of Scott's death. "If they had just listened to me and investigated what happened that night, this man might be alive today."

fuck.

[peristaltor.livejournal.com]

No video, no crime.

Sad but true. In an almost completely unrelated note, they have banned cameras at work, after a coworker used videoed incident to support his case. We are no longer able to carry recording equipment on our person if it is turned on, and may not use such equipment to make recordings.

[hardblue.livejournal.com]

Freedom is slavery. He who controls the past...

[telemann.livejournal.com]

A NYC city bus driver and a patron got into a fight if she could bring her dog on the bus (not a service dog - it was a white Maltese). It escalated and the bus driver started choking her. *Blink* I think some of the buses have cameras because drivers have been attacked in the past.

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/MTA-Bus-Driver-Chokes-Passenger-Fight-Dog-299114001.html

[peristaltor.livejournal.com]

Yikes. Look at that dog. I mean, really, look at that dog. He's one to make people . . . do things. ;-)

[oslo.livejournal.com]

I fear this may be only the beginning of a new chapter. I think we're going to see more laws (and more enforcement of laws) that prohibit the recording of these kinds of police encounters. Heavily pushed by police unions, whose leaders will complain about how these videos interfere with investigations, upset communities, endanger police officers, etc. And where the videos aren't explicitly prohibited, they'll retaliate in other ways.

We need laws - and we need them now, before the police/Republican response forms - explicitly protecting the right to record police officers in the performance of their duties, while providing for a private cause of action against police officers personally for any retaliation against the exercise of that right.

[telemann.livejournal.com]

I thought the issue had been settled by SCOTUS.

http://www.courtroomstrategy.com/2012/11/supreme-court-upholds-legality-of-videotaping-police/

[dexeron.livejournal.com]

It had, but that doesn't mean that the police won't still harass (and arrest) someone videotaping. They'll just say: "Oops, our bad" later. In the meantime, the chilling effect on people's willingness to stand out has been accomplished.

We need to mandate body cameras on every officer, and we need that now.

[oslo.livejournal.com]

Well, read your link. It explicitly states the the SCOTUS hasn't settled the issue. It just hasn't deemed the matter worthy of review yet. I also think it over-states the legal effect of the decisions in the First and Seventh Circuits, which would really bind only their inferior courts.

This is still a live issue. The SCOTUS at any point could take up a case and hold that the First Amendment doesn't protect the right to record the police. And, indeed, I wouldn't be surprised if it were to do so, since the SCOTUS on several occasions has held that the "right to free speech" doesn't necessarily entail the right to "gather information" or "access speech" or the like. It could very easily wave off the First Amendment angle to this issue by arguing that nothing about these laws prevent people from writing or saying what they might choose about the encounters they witness.

The SCOTUS as currently constituted cannot be trusted to protect us from police power. We need to seek solutions through the legislative realm, and we need to seek them before the Republicans decide they're going to block them (because I'm sure they eventually will).

[telemann.livejournal.com]

OK. Thanks for the clarification.

The SCOTUS as currently constituted cannot be trusted to protect us from police power.

There is a lot of agreement with that sentiment.

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

That is a great image.

[telemann.livejournal.com]

Thanks, buddy.

Yeah, I really liked it a lot. I'm glad you did too.

[blackdwarv.livejournal.com]

...already on the way (http://crooksandliars.com/2015/04/new-texas-bill-would-prevent-bystanders).

Thank you Texas...

[telemann.livejournal.com]

Last night, Rachel Maddow also mentioned that despite Illinois Supreme court striking down a law videotaping police, they passed another statue making taping an officer in a non-public area, a felony. The original case involved an officer and sexual harassment, and the woman who was going to file a complaint, was called into the station where two officers were trying to downplay what happened, and talk her out of filing charges, she taped them without their knowledge. When she told them at the end of the interview, she was charged and went to trial. The jury deliberated an hour and found her innocent.

[dexeron.livejournal.com]

Have you seen the article showing the police response up until the video was revealed? It was the same song and dance, and they were ready to pin all of the blame on the victim.

Then the video came out, and the higher ups distanced themselves so fast it would make your head spin.

Imagine in there was video of Michael Brown. Eh. Then again, there was video of Eric Garner, and we see the lack of action there, and the continued justifications for murder, the devaluing of human life to support a narrative.

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

Everyone involved in that cover up should fry.....for once.

[blackdwarv.livejournal.com]

Here you go (http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20150404/PC16/150409635/1180/man-shot-and-killed-by-north-charleston-police-officer-after-traffic-stop-sled-investigating).

[hindustar.livejournal.com]

Wow, that comment section. I couldn't look away.

[hindustar.livejournal.com]

I feel so incredibly sad for Scott's family.


It scares me that there are still people out there who don't want to believe this did happen. That the video "doesn't show everything" omg, I don't know whether to scream or cry.

[madscience.livejournal.com]

I hope this is the beginning of a sincere change in attitude among those who have systematically protected bad cops. But I doubt it.

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

Growing up in the bay area, seeing makeshift memorials and (mostly black) people with signs for loved ones slain by the police was commonplace. Now we have very inexpensive video cameras its amazing. I am weary of seeing these awful snuff videos, but happy to finally see some attention to the chronic problem. I wonder if our attentions will result in positive change? Do your disinfecting magic, sunlight!

[enders-shadow.livejournal.com]

This is the sort of outrageously FUCKING OUTRAGEOUSLY horrible bullshit cops do that created Chris Dorner.