Charlotte Residents Residents Call for Mayor, Police Chief to Resign
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Latest on protests following the shooting of a man by a Charlotte police officer last week (all times local):
10:30 p.m.
An emotionally charged audience has called on Charlotte's mayor and police chief to resign during a forum to let people express opinions about the shooting death last week of a black man by a police officer.
More than 100 people jammed City Council chambers Monday to vent their frustrations with police after the shooting death of Keith Lamont Scott.
Speakers took direct aim at Mayor Jennifer Roberts as well as Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney, calling on them to resign from their respective offices. Roberts and Putney have taken criticism for their handling of the aftermath of the shooting, including the delay in the release of video showing the shooting.
After more than two hours of hearing from residents, City Council members took the floor.
"The unrest here has been decades in the making," council member Al Alston said. "Tuesday was the boiling point, and it's getting hotter."
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8:15 p.m.
Several hundred demonstrators are marching peacefully through downtown Charlotte after leaving a rally organized by the NAACP to protest a man's fatal shooting by police.
The demonstrators left a downtown church Monday evening in a slow-moving procession behind a police SUV down the center of the streets. It's not clear whether the group had a parade permit.
Charlotte officials had warned earlier Monday that marching or demonstrating in the streets without a permit is illegal.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said Monday that four of the 11 people arrested overnight were charged with standing in the street. Police on Sunday stopped blocking downtown traffic to allow marchers in the road and directed demonstrators to stay on sidewalks.
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7:45 p.m.
A Charlotte-Mecklenburg police source says a gun recovered at the scene of last week's fatal police shooting had been stolen.
The police source said Monday that the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives told police investigators the gun had been stolen and later sold to Kevin Lamont Scott. The source insisted on speaking anonymously because the State Bureau of Investigation continues to look into the case.
SBI Agent Erik Hooks declined comment in an email when asked whether the gun was stolen.
Police Chief Kerr Putney said this weekend that Scott held a gun and didn't obey police orders to drop it. Scott's family said he didn't have a weapon.
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Leaders at a rally are asking for a federal investigation of police after the fatal shooting of Keith Lamont Scott in Charlotte.
North Carolina NAACP President the Rev. William Barber issued the call during a gathering of several hundred people at a historically black church Monday night. Barber says the entire Charlotte-Mecklenburg police force should be reviewed. Dozens in the crowd shouted "Amen!"
Relatives of black men shot by police told their stories from the pulpit to a diverse crowd at Little Rock AME Zion Church.
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Charlotte residents speaking at a City Council meeting are calling on Mayor Jennifer Roberts to resign.
The council set aside additional time Monday night to allow residents to voice their opinions in response to the shooting death of Keith Lamont Scott by a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer last week.
Audience outcry and heckling during one point of the citizens forum led Roberts to threaten to call a recess to calm the crowd down.
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7 p.m.
A racially mixed crowd of several hundred people is attending a rally at a historically black church seeking justice and transparency in the police shooting of Keith Lamont Scott in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Demonstrators chanted "no justice, no peace" Monday night as they entered Little Rock AME Zion Church and sang a civil rights anthem as the gathering began.
More than three dozen clergy members of several faiths gathered at the front of the sanctuary to applause.
Twenty-three-year-old Raven Daniels of Greenville, North Carolina, said she attended hoping for an end to violence and more economic opportunities for minorities. Daniels is black, and she says violence is claiming too many young black people.
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6:30 p.m.
The Charlotte City Council has extended the time of its regular citizens' forum to allow people to comment on the shooting death of a black man by a police officer.
Speakers began lining up in the lobby of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Government Center about an hour before the citizens forum was to begin at 6:30 p.m. Monday. It is expected that speakers will comment on the shooting death of Keith Lamont Scott.
Many of the people who signed up to speak were carrying signs. One man carried a sign calling for the repeal of legislation taking effect on Saturday blocking the release of police video without a court order.
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4 p.m.
The fatal shooting of a black man by a police officer in Charlotte is only the latest shooting to raise questions about how the department uses body cameras.
Six people were fatally shot since body cameras were given to all patrol officers about a year ago. But the officers who fired the fatal shots in five of those cases — including Keith Lamont Scott's — weren't using the cameras.
The weekend release of police footage showing the shooting of Scott left questions in many people's minds. The footage includes body camera video from another officer.
Police Chief Kerr Putney has said the officer who shot Scott wasn't wearing a body camera that day because he's part of a tactical unit. He says those units will get the cameras eventually, but he's been reluctant to allow recordings of their tactics and locations.
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3 p.m.
Lawyers for a coalition of media groups have written a letter asking for more video footage and other information related to a fatal police shooting.
The letter was sent Monday to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney and Charlotte City Manager Ron Kimble.
It asks for footage of the shooting of Keith Lamont Scott last week that wasn't included in a weekend release of about three minutes of body and dashboard camera video. It also asks for the police incident report.
The media group includes The Charlotte Observer, WBTV, The News & Observer, WFAE, The Associated Press, ABC News, CNN and WCNC.
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10:30 a.m.
Charlotte police are signaling tougher rules on marchers protesting the shooting death of a black man by police last week.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said Monday four of the 11 people arrested overnight were charged with standing in the street. Police on Sunday stopped blocking downtown traffic to allow marchers to walk in the roadway and directed demonstrators to stay on sidewalks.
Four people were charged with violating a local ordinance against bringing items like backpacks or body armor within a designated zone around the stadium where the NFL's Carolina Panthers played the Minnesota Vikings. A Charlotte man was charged with carrying a concealed gun into the area.
Charlotte police have arrested more than 70 people since 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott was killed Tuesday after a confrontation with Charlotte police.
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8:30 a.m.
Some protesters say they will attend a Charlotte City Council meeting and call for the resignation of the mayor and police chief after the shooting of a black man by a black police officer last week.
Protesters told WCNC-TV (http://bit.ly/2d3s5mq) they will attend the meeting at 6:30 p.m. Monday.
The protesters say they are unhappy with how Mayor Jennifer Roberts and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney have handled the investigation of the shooting of 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott on Sept. 20.
Police say Scott was a threat and refused to drop a gun despite repeated commands. Family members have said Scott did not have a gun. Police released both a body-camera and dashboard camera video on Saturday but the video does not clearly show if Scott had anything in his hand.
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3:10 a.m.
Charlotte lifted its midnight curfew, a sign of the possible calming of the unrest that's gripped North Carolina's largest city since the shooting death of a black man by police last week.
A weekend without street violence was highlighted with the city hosting the NFL game between the Carolina Panthers and the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
Protests continued for a sixth day since 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott was shot and killed Tuesday after a confrontation with Charlotte police. The first two nights were violent, with more than a dozen police officers injured.
Protesters tried to block traffic on Interstate 277 through the city's downtown Sunday night. Authorities said one protester was struck by a police all-terrain vehicle, but 26-year-old Donnell Jones of Missouri wasn't hurt. He was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
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