SC - Walter Scott, 50, fatally shot by North Charleston PD officer, 4 April 2015 - #1

[MyBelle]

"Santana,at some risk to his own safety, kept recording. Kept getting closer too. He films the arrival of a second cop. He films ....
"Scott, of course, was dead on the ground. Santana went to work. The news came on and when Santana heard the initial reports he knew what he heard was not what he had seen. He sought to tell police that he had the evidence of what actually occurred but got the distinct vibe this was not something they wanted, so he wondered what to do next."
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/04/13/the-man-who-watched-walter-scott-die.html April 13

bbm1
If Santana believed he was genuinely at risk for filming, why did he keep filming? And why did he get closer?

BTW: bbm2
Question: Was Scott pronounced dead at the scene? Or did ambulance transport him to hosp? I just do not recall.

bbm3
"Sought to tell" LE? Did he take his cellphone w video to PD station?
If he did, at PD station who gave him "distinct vibe"? What did they say?
If he did not take that concrete type step to show vid to LE, how did he get the "distinct vibe" LE did not want it?
From someone other than police?

Send the vid clip as email attachment to PD?
Email to CrimeStoppers org or equivalent?

I'm not sure what "vibe" Santana thought the cop who told him to stay there was actually meaning other than, "don't leave." Yet he did leave. If you truly are in fear for your safety wouldn't you tend to move away from the flying bullets than move toward them? Especially if you are in a foreign country? His actions haven't made a lot of sense.

JMO

 

[Tawny]

can we look at other areas of this case beyond the traffic stop and vehicle lights?

Anyone given any thought to whether or not Slager will agree to a deal to avoid a trial and avoid his child to be basicly fatherless? I can't help but wonder how the new baby to be will factor into the decisions Slager and his defense will have to make.

Yes, please, can we? Focusing on the tail lights and traffic stop makes it sound like it's somehow Scott's fault.

 

[SStarr33]

So he dropped it on the ground next to the victim? Seems he would have held onto it if he were securing it from falling into the wrong hands.

He was planting evidence. JMO.

IMO, it is unclear that he is picking up the object that he dropped. It looks like what he dropped was closer to Scott.

 

[dodie20]

If these officers are all super duper fearful of a stun gun being picked up by, I dunno, a random maniacal bystander, instead of having the wherewithal to be able to stand guard around a crime scene, why are they even cops? There is protocol for securing a crime scene and keeping wanderers out. They can't just move evidence around.

the man had a gun and wasn't scared to shoot! No way would a bystander run up and get shot himself, just so he could swipe a souvenir! Logic. Not everybody around was a criminal- no danger around every corner, no evil lurking behind every bush...moo, the only evil there that day was Slager. We'll wait and see what happens with the other cops. I WILL give them the benefit of the doubt until the investigation is completed. I hope they are all being honest, moo.

 

[Cubby]

Maybe instead of focusing on why Scott ran, we should be looking at why Slager chose to chase him rather than stay with the car and the other occupant.

Stoughton said there are several reasons it is better for a police officer to remain with the car he stopped rather than chase a driver fleeing on foot.

“The passenger is probably going to be able to tell you who the driver is and perhaps even why they ran, plus the officer gets the chance to secure evidence that happens to be in the vehicle,” he said.

Stoughton served five years as an officer with the Tallahassee, Fla., police department.

Chasing a fleeing driver on foot gives the passenger a chance to drive the suspect vehicle away or worse, if the officer left his patrol car unlocked and running, he said.

http://www.postandcourier.com/artic...2019-s-car-rather-than-give-chase-expert-says

 

[Woodland]

Does a shooting after a physical altercation with a cop and resisting arrest make sense to you? Because it sure does to me.

JMO

Suspect the near future will show only a small handful of people will continue to view LE shooting/beating incidents in this way.

Imo, there has been a wake-up call for citizens in general in North America as to the wide spread poor behavior of LE in the last 10 - 20 years. Previously there was no way to get across how often the shootings/beatings happened. Technology and discussions such as this one, with many from all walks of life taking part, changed all that.

 

[Bayou Mistress]

I'm not sure what "vibe" Santana thought the cop who told him to stay there was actually meaning other than, "don't leave." Yet he did leave. If you truly are in fear for your safety wouldn't you tend to move away from the flying bullets than move toward them? Especially if you are in a foreign country? His actions haven't made a lot of sense.

JMO

Santana should not have left. He had evidence that he left the scene with. However, he is not charged with obstruction or any other crime and I find his reaction of leaving the scene to be within the realm of normal given the situation (where a government official just shot an unarmed man in the back) to be completed understandable although probably less than lawful. Also, he didn't keep the evidence (video) for a month or a year. In the scheme of things, he turned it over pretty quickly.

 

[leah]

All I know is Officer Slager has been fired, sitting in jail with no bond, and charged with murder. There must be enough evidence for the charge, helped with the video and police report, I don't think that Slager is being targeted or being made an example of. I have not seen anyone on the news come to defend Slager and his actions, but I could have missed that. I also have no idea what Slager's intentions were, was it racial, was it not racial. I feel very bad for Mr. Scott's family, and I feel bad for Slager's family, especially his pregnant wife who has had nothing to do with this.

 

[dodie20]

"Santana,at some risk to his own safety, kept recording. Kept getting closer too. He films the arrival of a second cop. He films ....
"Scott, of course, was dead on the ground. Santana went to work. The news came on and when Santana heard the initial reports he knew what he heard was not what he had seen. He sought to tell police that he had the evidence of what actually occurred but got the distinct vibe this was not something they wanted, so he wondered what to do next."
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/04/13/the-man-who-watched-walter-scott-die.html April 13

bbm1
If Santana believed he was genuinely at risk for filming, why did he keep filming? And why did he get closer?

BTW: bbm2
Question: Was Scott pronounced dead at the scene? Or did ambulance transport him to hosp? I just do not recall.

bbm3
"Sought to tell" LE? Did he take his cellphone w video to PD station?
If he did, at PD station who gave him "distinct vibe"? What did they say?
If he did not take that concrete type step to show vid to LE, how did he get the "distinct vibe" LE did not want it?
From someone other than police?

Send the vid clip as email attachment to PD?
Email to CrimeStoppers org or equivalent?

none of that really matters at this point. What matters, is the the police did eventually see the video and immediately owned up to the consequences. Some of those things Might matter if an investigation is done on the dept itself and the way they handled the case, but, in their favor, at least they didn't demand the video for it 'to never be seen again'. Hopefully, in these situations, the videographer has the sense to run any incriminating video by a lawyer 1st and make copies as a safeguard. moo.

 

[Cubby]

Santana should not have left. He had evidence that he left the scene with. However, he is not charged with obstruction or any other crime and I find his reaction of leaving the scene to be within the realm of normal given the situation (where a government official just shot an unarmed man in the back) to be completed understandable although probably less than lawful. Also, he didn't keep the evidence (video) for a month or a year. In the scheme of things, he turned it over pretty quickly.

Wasn't it mentioned in MSM Santana left the scene because this all occured while he was on his way to work? I'm sure he had a start time and couldn't wait around for LE while his employer and clients expected him. If LE initially thought his information was that imperative they would have made time for him immediately.

 

[tambo]

No problem. And feel free to remind me if I go OT.

illowfight: lol

 

[Cubby]

“I know why he ran away. We know why he ran away. Everybody knows why he ran away now,” Anthony Scott said. “I wasn’t saying it before, but it’s out there now.”

http://www.postandcourier.com/artic...on_type_map=["og.comments"]&action_ref_map=[]

In 2003, child support payments were automatically drafted from Scott’s paycheck. Back then, he earned about $800 a month. It is unclear how much money he made at Brown Distribution.

“If God ever blessed me and I came into some money, I’d help,” Scott told the newspaper 12 years ago.

I like how back in 2003, 12 years ago he said how he would like to HELP with the financial needs of his children. What a guy. jmo idk

Thanks for the link. While I think it's a distraction, it is good the family addressed the child support situation. All I going to say is when Scott - or any non custodial parent - loses a job or financial situation changes it is the NCP's responsibility to petition the court for an adjustment in child support. Here in IL if the weekly child support is changed by 10% up or down the court will arrange a hearing for a CS adjustment. If the NCP fails to petition the court for an adjustment in the cs, they really have no one to blame but themselves for their arrears.



I understand completely Scott's brothers anger. According to WS he is a victim and we're a victim friendly forum. If it were a sibling of mine, I'd be livid they lost their life over fleeing from a traffic ticket.

The court, judge, grand jury, jury etc. and going to be deciding about the legitimacy of using lethal force. Lethal force, that is what's at the top of the list right now.

 

[Bayou Mistress]

Does a shooting after a physical altercation with a cop and resisting arrest make sense to you? Because it sure does to me.

JMO

People don't get arrested for broken brake lights. And unless there was imminent danger of harm to himself or others, Slager should not have used deadly force. Running/fleeing/failing to comply with the directive of an officer did not constitute imminent danger of harm to Slager or anyone else. That's why this is a murder case.

 

[popsicle]

This is what I don't understand.... the family said he called his mother and told her that he would be going back to jail because he was just pulled over for the brake light. The brother said it was like a heads up... be prepared to bail me out type of thing. So what changed in his mind that he decided to run instead?

 

[KaaBoom]

This is what I don't understand.... the family said he called his mother and told her that he would be going back to jail because he was just pulled over for the brake light. The brother said it was like a heads up... be prepared to bail me out type of thing. So what changed in his mind that he decided to run instead?

Maybe he didn't want his mother to have to bail him out again. Maybe he was just at the breaking point, where he didn't care anymore. Honestly if I was in his situation, I'd do the same thing.

 

[CoolJ]

This is what I don't understand.... the family said he called his mother and told her that he would be going back to jail because he was just pulled over for the brake light. The brother said it was like a heads up... be prepared to bail me out type of thing. So what changed in his mind that he decided to run instead?

Maybe he saw Slager and knew his reputation and decided to run before the inevitable taser came out?

 

[ScarlettScarpetta]

This is what I don't understand.... the family said he called his mother and told her that he would be going back to jail because he was just pulled over for the brake light. The brother said it was like a heads up... be prepared to bail me out type of thing. So what changed in his mind that he decided to run instead?

The actions of the officer. Something the officer said or did that made him feel like he was not safe, imo. Him calling his mom for bail means he was taking it in stride..

 

[Tawny]

Maybe he saw Slager and knew his reputation and decided to run before the inevitable taser came out?

The actions of the officer. Something the officer said or did that made him feel like he was not safe, imo. Him calling his mom for bail means he was taking it in stride..

Now, I'm not one to speculate as to what caused him to run, and I'm trying not to assume he had heard of Slager before but...

Slager had 2 prior excessive force complaints in the 2 years before this... Maybe just maybe Scott (or his passenger) had caught wind of those and was like "omg that's him"? Maybe. Maybe not. No way to know.

But could be they're just used to how this particular group of beat cops tends to treat men of color. Again, no way to really know, because I'm not a black man living in that area of that city. I can only speculate and wonder.

 

[Elley Mae]

This is what I don't understand.... the family said he called his mother and told her that he would be going back to jail because he was just pulled over for the brake light. The brother said it was like a heads up... be prepared to bail me out type of thing. So what changed in his mind that he decided to run instead?

While Officer Slager is back at his patrol car Scott is calling mom about bailing him out? And the ? is why did he run, I wonder what mom said, maybe that's why he ran. jmo idk

 

[CoolJ]

Now, I'm not one to speculate as to what caused him to run, and I'm trying not to assume he had heard of Slager before but...

Slager had 2 prior excessive force complaints in the 2 years before this... Maybe just maybe Scott (or his passenger) had caught wind of those and was like "omg that's him"? Maybe. Maybe not. No way to know.

But could be they're just used to how this particular group of beat cops tends to treat men of color. Again, no way to really know, because I'm not a black man living in that area of that city. I can only speculate and wonder.

Yep I'm in the same boat. Who knows why he ran?

But, since this thread is littered with examples of dreamt up scenarios to attack Mr. Scott's character. I figure it is ok to speculate with an example that questions the character of former officer Slager. Considering his past history of course.