Charlotte mayor issues curfew as third night of protests continue

ATLANTA — The mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina, has issued a city-wide curfew beginning at 12 a.m. Friday, as protests in that city went on for a third night.

So far, those protests have remained peaceful, with hundreds of people marching through the streets of uptown Charlotte.

Thursday's protests came as the family of Kevin Lamont Scott met with investigators and watched police video from Tuesday, when a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer fatally shot Scott.

Police say Scott refused to drop his weapon when he was told to. Scott's family says he didn't have a gun.

RELATED STORIES:

• Charlotte police chief: Family will view video of police shooting
• Charlotte police refuse to release video of deadly shooting
• CNN reporter knocked down during live coverage of Charlotte protests
• Reports: 1 shot in Charlotte protests
• NASCAR Hall of Fame damaged in Charlotte protests
• Cam Newton on Charlotte unrest: 'I'm a firm believer of justice'

After meeting with police, Scott's family released a statement saying:

"Keith Lamont Scott's wife and other members of her family viewed two videos captured by police dashboard and body cameras that showed Mr. Scott's shooting death.

"After watching the videos, the family again has more questions than answers.  

"When told by police to exit his vehicle, Mr. Scott did so in a very calm, non-aggressive manner.  

"While police did give him several commands, he did not aggressively approach them, or raise his hands at members of law enforcement at any time.  

"It is impossible to discern from the videos what, if anything, Mr. Scott is holding in his hands.

"When he was shot and killed, Mr. Scott's hands were by his side and he was slowly walking backwards.  

"It was incredibly difficult for members of the Scott family to view these videos, but as a matter of the greater good and transparency, the Scott family asks that the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department publicly immediately release both of the videos they watched today.

"We will continue our own investigation into Mr. Scott's death.  For those who wish to protest, we urge you to do so peacefully."

Protester made it clear Thursday night that they wanted the video of the shooting released.

"They won't release the tape. That makes no sense to us," one protester told Channel 2's Tom Jones.

Marchers moved worked their way through Charlotte's streets Thursday night, as hundreds of police officers and the National Guard followed closely to make sure things didn't get out of hand again.

For the past two nights, rioters get into confrontations with police, vandalized property and one protester was shot. That person died from his injuries Thursday.

Scott's family is calling on police to release the video to the public. So far, CMPD's police chief has refused.

Some argue the chief's decision to withhold video of the shooting is what's inciting riots.
 
"Be transparent," was the advice from Atlanta attorney L. Chris Stewart.
 
Stewart has represented the families of Alton Sterling, shot dead by police while selling CDs in Baton Rouge, and Walter Scott, an unarmed black man shot to death by a white officer in Charleston, South Carolina. Both cases similar to that of Keith Scott.
 
Stewart thinks releasing video of the Charlotte police shooting is the right thing to do.
 
"Look, at the end of the day, people will end up seeing the tape. That's just a fact. Release it now and do it for the public good," Stewart said.
 

Channel 2’s Rikki Klaus asked Stewart how things would be different in Charlotte, if the police chief had made the video public immediately after Scott died on Tuesday.

The lawyer thinks it would have prevented the riots, looting and violence on the streets.
 
"When you don't release videos of what happened, but you're coming out making statements about what happened, that leaves people who disagree or have questions upset," Stewart said.
 
Scott's family urged the police department Thursday to share the videos available, for the greater good of the Charlotte community and for transparency.
 
"It's the ultimate equalizer. Because videos are unbiased," Stewart said. "Once we start seeing each other as human beings and stop making biased judgments before you even interact with them, then the world would be a lot better."

"Keith Lamont Scott's wife and other members of her family viewed two videos captured by police dashboard and body cameras that showed Mr. Scott's shooting death.

"After watching the videos, the family again has more questions than answers.

"When told by police to exit his vehicle, Mr. Scott did so in a very calm, non-aggressive manner.

"While police did give him several commands, he did not aggressively approach them or raise his hands at members of law enforcement at any time.

"It is impossible to discern from the videos what, if anything, Mr. Scott is holding in his hands.

"When he was shot and killed, Mr. Scott's hands were by his side and he was slowly walking backwards.

"It was incredibly difficult for members of the Scott family to view these videos, but as a matter of the greater good and transparency, the Scott family asks that the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department publicly immediately release both of the videos they watched today.

"We will continue our own investigation into Mr. Scott's death.  For those who wish to protest, we urge you to do so peacefully."

Atlantan 'embarrassed' over Charlotte unrest
 
An Atlanta marketing executive who is in Charlotte for an album release party told Channel 2's Tom Jones that he is terribly disappointed in the protesters who vandalized businesses in the Queen City.

“These are opportunists. These aren't Black Lives Matter people,” Carlos Scott told Jones. “But to knock in the windows, and what they started with the looting at the Walmart. What did Walmart have to do with this?”

The violence has embarrassed the marketing executive as well.

“That's an ugly segment,” Scott said.

Businesses like the Hilton Garden Inn in Uptown Charlotte were vandalized during Wednesday night’s riot.

Scott said none of it makes sense.

“This right here has nothing to do with any of that. If you want to really affect them how about just, if you feel like the Hilton, which they don't have anything to do with it, just don't stay there,” Scott told Jones.

Scott said he was also in Charlotte for the screening of a new movie. Because of a third night of possible protests, the producers didn't feel safe.

“So they canceled it about two hours ago,” Scott said.

Demonstration planned for Atlanta
 
Channel 2 Action News talked to local civil rights leaders about how the protests in Charlotte are different than the protests we saw in Atlanta a few months ago.

Channel 2 investigative reporter Aaron Diamant confirmed Thursday that the NAACP is planning a large demonstration and a march through the streets of downtown Atlanta Friday evening.

The demonstration is expected to start at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in downtown Atlanta.

Last July, a similar event brought out nearly 15,000 people.

While it is unknown how many people are expected to attend, organizers and state police told Diamant they expect, like last time, that it will remain peaceful.

"What happened was, it was a flashpoint," said Georgia NAACP leader Gerald Griggs about the Charlotte demonstrations. "What I do know his family is hurting, and there's no answers."

An earlier string of black men shot and killed by police sparked a massive demonstration in downtown Atlanta in July. Although those who attended the demonstration were passionate, things remained peaceful.
 
"You have a lot of people who have experience in the Civil Rights Movement here in Atlanta that were able to give their wisdom and their insight, and were actually present at the march that kept control," Griggs said.

The tensest scenes played out where some protesters met face-to face with Georgia State Patrol troopers, who were without riot gear and were blocking ramps to the downtown connector.

Mayor Kasim Reed showed up right in the middle.

"My message was that we're respecting their First Amendment rights, but we're the home of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the only thing that I ask is that they not take the freeways. Dr. King would never take a freeway," Reed told the protesters at the time.

On Thursday, Georgia's public safety director, Col. Mark McDonough, had high praise for the Atlanta demonstrators.

"They did a very, very good job in maintaining their order and maintaining their rules and the purpose of why they were there," McDonough said.

And with another large demonstration planned for downtown Atlanta Friday, McDonough told Diamant the same strategies to keep the peace will be in play.

"Not that you're not open to shift or have a different strategy, but you start off with what works here," McDonough said.

Organizers told Diamant they expect about 1,000 marchers to show up Friday, but they expected a 1,000 in July and got 10,000 to 15,000.

Before July’s demonstration, Reed had a very strong message to marchers, but Diamant was not able to reach him Thursday.

Cox Media Group