GUILTY SC - Walter Scott, 50, fatally shot by North Charleston PD officer, 4 April 2015 - #2

[drjones]

I just watched the video again. Where did the black officer come from in that video? Also, did he testify as to whether the gun dropped next to Scott was the taser or Slagers gun? I thought I remember audio of Slager and Scott wrestling. And I'm not trying to argue, but it seems like anytime an officer has shot someone that I've seen them drop a gun next to the victim. I always assumed it was the way officers immediately surrendered their gun or taser. Like placing their own evidence with the victim so that other officers may retrieve it peacefully. Maybe I've been wrong all this time?

In the years since this, I've been meaning to drive back there to see exactly what it looks like. Talk about a procrastinator, that I am.

i dont think its very common for an officer to drop a gun next to a victim that has been shot, i think it is a rumor that comes up a lot tho. but in this case it was the taser that he dropped, after shooting scott and cuffing him slager immediately went back to where the taser was, picked it up, and then dropped it right next to scott's body.

when asked about it at trial he said he didnt remember, even though he had virtually perfect recall of everything else that happened.

i dont buy cases of selective memory when they are too convenient for defendants and when they seem implausible, imo that is exactly what you have here.

 

[bluesneakers]

^^^^^

 

[Zuri]

Did the count remain 11 Guilty 1Not Guilty?

And why did Savage say it wasn't about Mr. Scott? It was about the State of South Carolina?

 

[Tawny]

Did the count remain 11 Guilty 1Not Guilty?

And why did Savage say it wasn't about Mr. Scott? It was about the State of South Carolina?

I don't like the way that comes across. It was very much about Mr Scott and his murder. This wasn't some challenge to the laws of South Carolina.

 

[Zuri]

I don't like the way that comes across. It was very much about Mr Scott and his murder. This wasn't some challenge to the laws of South Carolina.

I agree. The State is supposed to speak for Mr. Scott...

 

[bwt42]

Did the count remain 11 Guilty 1Not Guilty?

And why did Savage say it wasn't about Mr. Scott? It was about the State of South Carolina?

He could have meant the state agreed to seat these twelve jurors and was unable to secure a conviction. Therefore, the state failed.

 

[KaaBoom]

This case was lost the day they selected the jury, in a city that is 46% African-American. But the jury selected was 8% African-American. The jury system is a sham. The defence just selects jurors who will acquit their client, rather than a jury that is a cross section of the community. It was not a true jury of the community.

If they really wanted to have a true jury of the people, they would enter all the potential jurors in the jury pool into a lottery, and select them randomly. Then they would come out with a jury that actually looks like the community, and justice would have a fair chance.

 

[Jax49]

As if anyone doubted what the prosecution will do. BBM

http://www.wbrz.com/news/prosecutor...-in-walter-scott-shooting-following-mistrial/

Prosecutors say they intend to retry a fired South Carolina police officer whose murder trial ended in a mistrial on Monday when jurors could not reach a verdict.

Could/should bond be reconsidered since it appears the majority of the jury was in favor of a guilty verdict?

 

[Woodland]

This case was lost the day they selected the jury, in a city that is 46% African-American. But the jury selected was 8% African-American. The jury system is a sham. The defence just selects jurors who will acquit their client, rather than a jury that is a cross section of the community. It was not a true jury of the community.

If they really wanted to have a true jury of the people, they would enter all the potential jurors in the jury pool into a lottery, and select them randomly. Then they would come out with a jury that actually looks like the community, and justice would have a fair chance.

While the prosecution of such cases appears to be putting a serious effort at conviction, can't help but have some reservations on the overall intent.

How did the jury end up with 11 white people in a city that is 46% AA?

 

[Tawny]

I think juries should be blindly questioned. Behind a screen or something. Anonymous so the internal biases we ALL have (of various types) cannot come into play.

 

[Canaille]

I think juries should be blindly questioned. Behind a screen or something. Anonymous so the internal biases we ALL have (of various types) cannot come into play.

BBM

Like in a confessional at a Catholic church. ;-p

The court does send out questionnaires a couple months before being called for jury duty on a case like this. I received one just after this shooting occurred and had thought it might have been for this case, but what I received came from Federal court. Many of the questions related to whether one would be biased in the case of a shooting by an officer.

 

[Tawny]

BBM

Like in a confessional at a Catholic church. ;-p

The court does send out questionnaires a couple months before being called for jury duty on a case like this. I received one just after this shooting occurred and had thought it might have been for this case, but what I received came from Federal court. Many of the questions related to whether one would be biased in the case of a shooting by an officer.

Those kinds of questions make me chuckle because 1) most people do not believe they're ever biased and 2) if you recognize your own bias (even if willing to listen to another side) and are honest about it, you're eliminated which means honest people are eliminated.

 

[lonetraveler]

This case was lost the day they selected the jury, in a city that is 46% African-American. But the jury selected was 8% African-American. The jury system is a sham. The defence just selects jurors who will acquit their client, rather than a jury that is a cross section of the community. It was not a true jury of the community.

If they really wanted to have a true jury of the people, they would enter all the potential jurors in the jury pool into a lottery, and select them randomly. Then they would come out with a jury that actually looks like the community, and justice would have a fair chance.

Although I was a bit surprised at the racial makeup of the jury, race had absolutely nothing to do with the mistrial, IMO. There were eleven white jurors, one African American juror. There were eleven jurors for guilty and one juror for not guilty. One can assume the one juror for "not guilty" was white since it's been said that the foreman was the one "African American" relating to the judge that the one lone "not guilty" had issues and needed to be removed.

Sent from my HTCD100LVWPP using Tapatalk

 

[Woodland]

Although I was a bit surprised at the racial makeup of the jury, race had absolutely nothing to do with the mistrial, IMO. There were eleven white jurors, one African American juror. There were eleven jurors for guilty and one juror for not guilty. One can assume the one juror for "not guilty" was white since it's been said that the foreman was the one "African American" relating to the judge that the one lone "not guilty" had issues and needed to be removed.

Sent from my HTCD100LVWPP using Tapatalk

I can see what you are trying to say with the numbers and even the race issue - pretty sure not many would disagree.

Imo, it's an emotional issue about LE shooting another AA - it's the norm in America and LE are hero's to be bowed down to - apparently. That is what some are questioning at this point - with the make-up of the jury.

Jmo.

 

[Woodland]

BBM

Like in a confessional at a Catholic church. ;-p

The court does send out questionnaires a couple months before being called for jury duty on a case like this. I received one just after this shooting occurred and had thought it might have been for this case, but what I received came from Federal court. Many of the questions related to whether one would be biased in the case of a shooting by an officer.

So easy to circumvent - and find yourself on a jury where the outcome for LE is paramount over justice for an unjustified shooting? This type of shooting is not OK in the criminal code - right?

 

[MzOpinion8d]

there is no need to inject race into the discussion and doing so will likely get this thread closed.

did walter scott run while being detained? yes.

did he struggle with the officer while being tased and run again? yes.

did he have control of the officer's taser and actually tase the officer? unproven, highly doubtful imo, but claimed by the officer.

could anyone reasonably feel after watching the video that walter scott was an imminent threat to the officer when the officer decided to fire? i dont think so, and i honestly dont see how any reasonable person could feel that way.

i did not see all of the trial but i read all of the reports i could find. i simply do not believe that walter scott took the taser and tased the officer, and i dont believe that the officer was in fear for his life (or felt other lives would be imminently at risk) when he fired.

Scott couldn't have tased the officer. The taser had already been fired, and the model he had isn't a multi-shot unit. One and done. And the taser prongs were in Scott.

 

[drjones]

Scott couldn't have tased the officer. The taser had already been fired, and the model he had isn't a multi-shot unit. One and done. And the taser prongs were in Scott.

do you have a source for this? why would the prosecution not mention this if that was the case? all they talked about was that the distance was too great, which was a fairly weak argument - why would they not mention this point which would have blown the claim out of the water?

 

[Woodland]

LIVE BLOG / DAY 1:

10 a.m. Opening arguments have begun.

Wilson says Slager's Taser was in “dry-stun mode,” which means that it must have been touching Walter Scott’s body.


LIVE BLOG / DAY 3:

4:30 p.m. BC, an employee of Taser International has now taken the stand.

5 p.m. ... The day ended with defense attorney Andy Savage cross-examining BC, an employee of Taser International.

Savage asked Chiles many questions about his analysis of the taser used during Slager and Scott's encounter.

"All I can say is that the trigger was pulled 7 times that day," Chiles said when questioned about the taser's effectiveness. "I can't speak on how effective it was."

http://www.postandcourier.com/news/...cle_48ba1684-a10b-11e6-a639-a3b9a114da5f.html

 

[drjones]

http://www.live5news.com/story/28735506/manufacturer-officer-could-only-deploy-taser-one-time

so i think the confusion is that the taser can be used as a stun gun by putting it in direct contact with the target (not firing the prongs and leads)

maybe they covered this in more detail in court.

 

[drjones]

^^aha we were posting at the same time, thanx for the blog link, i think that explains the issue pretty well