After days of protest and unrest in North Carolina, police officials announced plans to release footage of the Keith L. Scott shooting. Speaking to reporters on Saturday (Sept. 24) at the West Charlotte police station, police chief Kerr Putney said the dashboard and body camera recordings supports the department’s narrative that the father of seven was in possession of a firearm.
“The video does not give me absolute, definitive visual evidence that would confirm that a person is pointing a gun,”Putney said. Police officers approached Scott on Tuesday (Sept. 20) at his apartment complex in northeast Charlotte to serve a warrant. Upon their contact with the father of seven, they noticed he was in possession of marijuana and gun. From there, the incident escalated, leading to an alleged standoff between Scott and the police.
The footage released to the public is not the video in its’ entirety, Putney explained. “There is a crime that he committed and the gun exacerbated that,” he said. “They were specifically looking for somebody wanted. The facts are the facts and they will not change. That’s what we’re presenting here.” CMPD also supported Putney’s statements in a deleted tweet.
Putney added the release of Rakeyia Scott’s video isn’t related to their decision to release the selected footage. Scott’s family viewed the videos in private before releasing their footage on Friday. Witness accounts have surfaced telling a different story. Witness Tracy McLean shared with reporters that after Scott was shot, officers went into his car. Another witness claimed it wasn’t Brentley Vinson, but another cop who fired their weapon.
Putney promised reporters the video would be released sometime Saturday afternoon. Check out the news conference below.