The family of a black man shot dead by police has called for calm as the city of Charlotte braces for fresh protests following two nights of ugly violence.
The centre of the North Carolina city had a heavy police presence on Thursday, after two successive nights that had seen peaceful protests over the death of Keith Lamont Scott, turn violent.
North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency during Wednesday night’s rioting, which saw one man critically wounded by a gunshot. At least eight more civilians and four police officers were injured and 44 people were arrested.
Police have insisted that Mr Scott was armed and represented a threat when he was shot and killed on Tuesday. Police Chief Kerry Putney said he planned to show video of the shooting to the 43-year-old’s family, but would not yet release it to the public.
Meanwhile, in what officials hope will defuse tension, Mr Scott’s widow released a statement in which she asked for restraint.
“My family is devastated by the shooting death of my husband, Keith. Keith was a loving husband, father, brother and friend who will be deeply missed every day,” she said.
“As a family, we respect the rights of those who wish to protest, but we ask that people protest peacefully. Please do not hurt people or members of law enforcement, damage property or take things that do not belong to you in the name of protesting.”
The US top law official, Attorney General Loretta Lynch, also urged for calm and understanding. She said she was sending members of the Department of Justice to Charlotte to offer assistance and support for crowd mediation.
“For the second day in a row, protests in response to the death of Keith Lamont Scott took place in Charlotte last night,” she said.
“And for the second day in a row, the protests were marred by violence – this time leaving one person on life support and several injured – an awful reminder that violence only begets violence.”
Mr Scott, who had seven children, was shot and killed by a black police officer on Tuesday afternoon. Police claimed the man had emerged from a car with a gun and was threatening them, while family members said he was sitting in a car reading a book. They also said he was disabled.
Mr Putney, the police chief, who himself is African American, has insisted that police recovered a weapon from the scene of the fatal shooting of Mr Scott. He admitted on Thursday, however, that dash-cam footage of the incident did not definitively show Mr Scott pointing a gun at anyone.
He said he would show it to the family of the deceased man.
“I’m not going to release the video right now,” he said. “The family made a request to see it and we’re looking to accommodate that request.”
Charlotte’s reluctance to release the video in contrast to a decision taken in Oklahoma, where officials on Monday released footage of the fatal shooting of Terence Crutcher by police after his vehicle broke down on a road. That shooting is now the subject of a Department of Justice investigation.
In Charlotte, as city workers cleared up the streets and repaired damaged doors and broken windows, police were out in heavy number.
Katiana Hicks, 28, a nurse, who is black, said the recent protests came against a backdrop of racism that dated back centuries. She said if racism in Charlotte was not overt, it often lurked beneath the surface.
“I call it racism with a bow-tie - corporate racism,” she told The Independent. “They won’t say they can’t hire you because you’re black, but they’ll just say they are fully staffed.”
Mike Moret, a 25-year-old salesman, said he believed the city was more progressive than many places in the US South. Mr Moret said he believed the media may have played a role in sparking Wednesday night’s agitation after rumors spread that a person who had been shot at the protests, had been a victim of police.
The person, who was seriously injured but was not killed, as was initially reported, was shot by another civilian.
“Right after the sun went down, it started to change,” said Mr Moret, who is white. “I think it was because of the rumours flying about.”
