Protests in response to the death of Keith Lamont Scott in Charlotte ended with gunfire when one civilian was shot by another on Wednesday evening, according to CNN. One of the civilians is currently in critical condition and a police officer who was also injured at the scene was rushed to the hospital.
The protests were being held not only in response to Scott's death, but also to the general pattern of black people shot by police. These shootings have taken place at an alarming rate over the past year, increasing the rage of protesters in Charlotte.
Violence has erupted the last two nights, when people threw rocks, blocked a highway and destroyed property, NBC News reports. Tear gas was used to control the crowd after 16 officers were injured.
Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts noted that she will not be releasing the video of Scott’s shooting to the public due to the fact that the police are still investigating. Evidence at the scene, including a recovered gun, point to the idea that Scott was armed. Scott’s family claim he was unarmed and reading a book when shot by police. According to CNBC, body and dashboard camera video from the scene will be shown to Scott's family. Chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department Kerr Putney, who spoke at a press conference on Thursday, made the point that even if the video is released, it may not have much of an effect as many people "have already made up their minds" on what happened in the Scott case.
Chief Putney asks that the public help police during this time by posting on social media if they see something wrong in the wake of the protests. With different accounts of the shooting and tension heavy in the air, it's clear that we still have a lot of work to do to stop violence like this from happening.
