(Recasts first paragraph, adds afternoon protest planned, other
details)
By Robert MacMillan and Mike Blake
CHARLOTTE, N.C., Sept 24 (Reuters) - Police in Charlotte,
North Carolina were under mounting pressure on Saturday to make
public video of the fatal police shooting of a black man that
sparked unrest this week, after a fourth night of protests
unfolded peacefully under the watch of National Guard troops.
The shooting on Tuesday of Keith Scott, a 43-year-old father
of seven, was one of a series of deadly incidents across the
country in recent years that has raised questions about use of
force by U.S. law enforcement against African-Americans and
other minorities.
The circumstances of Scott's shooting, including whether
Scott was brandishing a gun as police have said, have come under
intense scrutiny that increased when the man's family on Friday
released a cellphone video of the violent encounter.
Even so, police have refused to release video from a police
dashboard camera and body camera of the incident, saying its
immediate release could compromise an investigation.
Hundreds of protesters wound through the streets of
Charlotte on Friday night and early Saturday morning under the
eye of armed National Guard troops, led by demonstrators holding
a banner calling on police to "release the tapes." There were no
violent confrontations like those in prior nights, and police
did not enforce a midnight curfew.
Another demonstration was scheduled in Charlotte on Saturday
afternoon, with protesters expected to renew their calls for the
release of the police video.
A two-minute video, recorded by Scott's wife Rakeyia and
released to U.S. media outlets on Friday, showed the events
leading up to the shooting, but not the shooting itself. In the
video, the woman can be heard pleading with officers to hold
fire as they confronted her husband in a parked car outside a
Charlotte apartment complex.
'DON'T DO IT'
Scott's wife used her cellphone camera when she saw police
confronting her husband in a parked car outside a Charlotte
apartment complex. She can be heard telling officers "Don't
shoot him! He has no weapon" as they yell at Scott, "Drop the
gun!"
Scott's wife also can be heard shouting "Keith, Keith, don't
do it," although it is not clear whether she is directing her
comments to her husband or police. The footage captures the
sound of four shots but does not show Scott being hit.
It is also not clear from the footage whether he is in
possession of a gun as police have stated.
The family originally contended Scott was carrying a book,
not a gun. But after viewing the police video on Thursday, the
family concluded it was "impossible to discern" what, if
anything, Scott was carrying, an attorney representing the
family said.
Scott, who was sitting in a parked car when confronted by
police, was shot by Officer Brentley Vinson, who has been placed
on paid administrative leave. Vinson is also black.
Scott's family, which has been permitted to see the police
video, the protesters and even Democratic U.S. presidential
nominee Hillary Clinton have called for its release.
Clinton on Friday had announced plans to go to Charlotte on
Sunday, but postponed the visit for a week after Charlotte Mayor
Roberts publicly asked her to delay it.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney has said that
the unreleased video supported the police version of events. He
told reporters on Friday that releasing it now could harm the
investigation, which the state is leading.
Putney said that he would eventually agree to the release of
the video, adding, "It's a matter of when and a matter of
sequence."
(Writing by Will Dunham in Washington, Editing by Franklin
Paul)
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