Jury selection begins in case of Black motorist shot by cop

Britta Lee, Regional Content Editor

9 years ago

This photo provided by the Charleston County, S.C., Sheriff’s Office shows Patrolman Michael Thomas Slager on Tuesday, April 7, 2015. (AP Photo/Charleston County Sheriff’s Office)

This photo provided by the Charleston County, S.C., Sheriff's Office shows Patrolman Michael Thomas Slager on Tuesday, April 7, 2015. Slager has been charged with murder in the shooting death of a black motorist after a traffic stop. North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey told a news conference that city Slager was arrested and charged Tuesday after law enforcement officials saw a video of the shooting following a Saturday traffic stop. (AP Photo/Charleston County Sheriff's Office) — This photo provided by the Charleston County, S.C., Sheriff’s Office shows Patrolman Michael Thomas Slager on Tuesday, April 7, 2015. (AP Photo/Charleston County Sheriff’s Office)

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Jury selection begins Monday in the murder trial of a White former police officer charged with shooting an unarmed Black motorist in April 2015.
The incident came to light — and shocked a nation — after a bystander recorded it on cellphone video.
The jury being chosen in Charleston this week will have to decide if former North Charleston officer Michael Slager is guilty of murder in the death of Walter Scott. The encounter began when Slager pulled Scott over for a broken taillight.

In this April 4, 2015, frame from video provided by Attorney L. Chris Stewart representing the family of Walter Lamer Scott, Scott appears to be running away from City Patrolman Michael Thomas Slager, right, in North Charleston, S.C. (AP Photo/Courtesy of L. Chris Stewart)

Slager’s attorney says there is more to the incident than the brief video of the shooting. Attorney Andy Savage says other parts of the video show a fight between the two men and a struggle over the officer’s Taser.