September 2016 US & Canada
A third night of protests has rocked the city of
Charlotte, North Carolina, after a black man was
shot dead by a black police officer on Tuesday.
Thursday's protest was largely peaceful after
violence a day earlier during which one person
was fatally shot.
Keith Lamont Scott's family dispute police
allegations he was armed and want video
recording to be released.
Excessive police force used against black men
has been the subject of protests for two years
across the US.
Ms Shelby's lawyer, Scott Wood, has said she
believed Mr Crutcher was under the influence of
the synthetic drug PCP. A vial of the drug was
found in the car.
His family have disputed Ms Shelby's claim,
arguing that his window was closed at the time
of the incident.
Police have said no gun was found on Mr
Crutcher or inside his vehicle.
The US justice department has also opened a
separate investigation to see if Mr Crutcher's civil
rights were violated.
If convicted, Ms Shelby faces a minimum of four
years in prison.
After the charge, a small group of demonstrators
gathered to demand a harsher sentence.
Violence 'from drugs'
Just four days before the first presidential
debate, Republican Donald Trump said the
violence from the Charlotte protests was largely
due to drugs.
"If you're not aware, drugs are a very, very big
factor in what you're watching on television at
night," he said.
Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Kaine
said the list of black men fatally shot by police
had "grown too long" and the country needed to
confront the issue of racial tensions.
Republican Congressman Robert Pittenger, of
North Carolina, told the BBC the protesters hated
white people because white people were
successful, but he later apologised for his
comments in an interview with CNN.
Easing tensions
On Tuesday, Mr Scott was killed in Charlotte after
police say he refused to drop a gun he was
carrying. His family say he was unarmed and
holding a book.
Police have released a video of the shooting to
the family, but have refused to make it public.
The family's lawyer, Justin Bamberg, said no gun
was visible in the video and Mr Scott appeared to
be "acting calm".
"You do see something in his hand, but it's
impossible to make out from the video what it
is."
Police chief Kerr Putney said the video proved the
shooting was justified, telling Fox news: "The
officer perceived his failure to comply with
commands, failure to drop the weapon and facing
the officers as an imminent threat."
On Thursday, demonstrators protesting against
Mr Scott's death defied a curfew put into force
by the city's mayor on Thursday - running from
midnight to 06:00.
According to Cpt Mike Campagna, officers did not
enforce the curfew as protests were largely
peaceful, with some on the street singing gospel
songs.
However Charlotte police reported two officers
were injured.
Hundreds of National Guard troops were deployed
on the streets to protect the city against further
violence and property damage.
It followed Wednesday's protest during which
protesters smashed windows of hotels and
restaurants, set fires, and attacked reporters.
Tulsa: 'Unreasonable' force
Peaceful demonstrations took place in the
aftermath of last week's shooting in Tulsa,
Oklahoma.
On Thursday, officer Betty Shelby was charged
with manslaughter for shooting an unarmed man.
Prosecutors said her decision to shoot Terence
Crutcher was "unreasonable".
Video of the incident shows Mr Crutcher with his
hands up, leaning against the car.
Officer Shelby said Mr Crutcher had not followed
her commands and she had opened fire when he
began to reach into his car window.
As well as being shot, Mr Crutcher was also
struck with a stun gun by another officer.
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