Keith Scott case: Charlotte mayor says police shooting video should be released eventually

Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts said she believes video of a fatal police shooting should be publicly released, but officials on Friday punted responsibility for disclosure of the footage, announcing the case has been turned over to the State Bureau of Investigations.

“I do believe the video should be released. The question is on the timing,” the mayor said at a Friday press conference.

Protesters rallying in the North Carolina city the last three nights have called for transparency in the investigation and demanded videos taken at the scene of 42-year-old Keith Lamont Scott’s shooting be released.

Scott’s family was shown police body camera and dashboard camera footage of the incident Thursday night and has since then called for the release of the videos. A lawyer representing the family said that they came away with more questions than answers and interpreted the footage differently than police.

“When told by police to exit his vehicle, Mr. Scott did so in a very calm, nonaggressive manner,” said attorney Justin Bamberg. “While police did give him several commands, he did not aggressively approach them or raise his hands at members of law enforcement at any time.”

He said at the time an officer opened fire, “Mr. Scott’s hands were by his side, and he was slowly walking backwards.”

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney said it was unclear from the video whether Scott was holding or pointing a firearm when the black officer, who has been identified as Brentley Vinson, opened fire. Police were at the apartment complex where the shooting occurred to serve a warrant to another person when officers encountered Scott, who they said was seen with a gun.

Police said a handgun was recovered from the scene, though Scott’s family said he did not own a firearm.

The chief has previously said he did not want to taint the investigation by releasing the video.

But on Friday he announced that the investigation has officially been turned over to North Carolina’s State Bureau of Investigation for an independent assessment.

“I know the expectation is that video footage will be a panacea, and I can tell you that is not the case,” Chief Putney said. “The process is painstakingly slow sometimes, so I ask for your continued patience as the State Bureau of Investigation conducts their thorough investigation because it’s going to take them some time to piece together everything that has happened.”