S.C. Man Shot And Killed By Police Last Enlisted With Coast Guard In Baltimore
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Newly released dash cam video is shedding new light on what happened in the moments before the fatal confrontation between a South Carolina police officer and an unarmed man. WJZ has learned the victim spent time here in Baltimore.
Christie Ileto has more on the victim's ties to Maryland.
Walter Scott spent two years with the U.S. Coast Guard. His very last post was right here in Baltimore.
New police dash cam video shows how it all unfolded. Police Officer Michael Slager stops Walter Scott, who tells him he didn't have registration because he's planning on buying a car. Seconds later, Scott bolts and Slager chases after him.
That's where the now infamous cell phone video picks up. The two scuffle before Slager fired eight times at a fleeing Scott.
Slager telling dispatchers: "Shots fired. Subject is down. He grabbed my taser."
Slager can also be seen dropping something near Scott's body. He's now charged with murder.
"That video should change the course of what's going on in the U.S. with all the senseless shootings," said Anthony Scott, victim's brother.
Scott's family tries to make sense of the incident that's now in the national spotlight.
"I'm not supposed to bury my son, my son is supposed to bury me," said Judy Scott, victim's mother.
WJZ confirmed that both Slager and Scott served with the U.S. Coast Guard; Scott serving for two years, but his very last post was right here in Baltimore.
The U.S. Coast Guard tells WJZ, at 19, Scott entered the service, serving from 1984 to 1986. His last unit was here in Baltimore at Curtis Bay, where he was a fireman's apprentice.
A drug-related offense led him to leave the Coast Guard, or, what's called "involuntary separation." He was later discharged under honorable conditions, but it's the way Walter Scott died that lives in our minds.
There was a passenger inside Scott's car at the time of the incident. He was detained by police during the incident. His family says he's not related to Scott.
Slager is being held without bond. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.
Seven other officers who arrived on the scene are also being investigated.
