Walter Scott Shooting: Witness Says Scott Never Tried to Grab Taser From Police Officer Michael Slager
The man who recorded a South Carolina police officer fatally shooting an unarmed black man several times in the back is speaking out.
Feidin Santana, 23, says that he originally thought about remaining anonymous and even deleting the incriminating video, which he recorded on his cell phone. However, he has decided to speak publicly in a number of television interviews about the tragic police shooting he witnessed last weekend.
"I ... thought about erasing the video," Santana admitted on MSNBC's "All in With Chris Hayes" Wednesday evening. "I felt that my life, with this information, might be in danger."
He added, "I know the cop didn't do ... the right thing. And like I say, I feel kind of scared about that."
In the video, 50-year-old Walter Lamar Scott is seen running for his life while Officer Michael Slager, 33, fires eight shots, fatally striking him in the back.
The incident began Saturday morning when Slager pulled Scott over during a traffic stop in North Charleston. Raw video from the cop's dash cam shows that Scott ran away on foot while Slager was looking up his information, reports CNN. According to a police report, Scott also allegedly tried to take Slager's stun gun during a struggle.
Contrary to the report, Santana says that Scott did not try to grab the officer's Taser. Instead, the witness says that Scott was trying to get away.
"Mr. Scott never tried to fight," Santana told CNN.
"As you can see in the video, the police officer just shot him in the back. ... And I knew right away that I had something in my hands," Santana told NBC's Lester Holt on Wednesday.
"They were down on the (ground) ... before I started recording," Santana said. "I remember the police (officer) had control of the situation. He had control of Scott."
Santana said he heard the sound of a Taser being used, and that he believed Scott was trying to run away so that he would not be tasered.
"He never grabbed the Taser of the police. He never got the Taser," Santana told NBC's Matt Lauer on Thursday on "Today."
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