Some good news is coming out of South Carolina, in a case involving a bad cop, an unarmed man, and an outcry for justice.
Michael Slager, 33, has been indicted by a grand jury for murdering Walter Scott back in April.
"I think the people of the 9th circuit elected me to be accountable to them, and that’s what we intend to do," Charleston County Solicitor Scarlett Wilson said during a news conference following the announcement of the indictment Monday. "They have to know they have someone prosecuting the case who is accountable to them."
Scott’s death gained national attention to the already growing tensions over police use of force against unarmed black citizens, particularly after Feidin Santana’s eyewitness video of the encounter surfaced and contradicted initial police reports that Scott had grabbed Slager’s stun gun.
The encounter between Slager and Scott started with a minor traffic stop on the morning of April 4, when Slager pulled Scott over for a broken tail light. According to dash cam video of the stop, Scott provided his license but explained he does not have registration or insurance information for the vehicle because he was in the process of buying the car.
After a brief exchange, Slager walked back to his squad car with Scott’s license while Scott and his passenger, Pierre D. Fulton, waited. Scott attempted to exit his vehicle but was ordered back inside by Slager.
Moments later, Scott opened the door again, and ran away. Slager chased him, and ultimately fired his stun gun on Scott, according to the incident report.
Slager then fired several shots with his gun as Scott was running away. Scott suffered five gunshot wounds, and officially died from gunshot wounds to the back.
Rodney, Scott's younger brother, shared the family's reaction to the indictment.
“This morning, the grand jury made the decision to indict Mr. Slager for murder, and we’re very pleased and happy about that,” he said.
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