Charlotte lifts curfew after days of protests

The mayor of Charlotte has lifted the curfew on the city after days of protests over the killing of a black man by police.

There have been protests every day since 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott was shot to death by Charlotte police on Tuesday.

In a statement Sunday evening, Mayor Jennifer Roberts says that effective immediately the curfew imposed is terminated.

A midnight to 6 a.m. curfew has been in effect since Thursday after the protests turned violent, and National Guardsmen have been stationed throughout downtown each night. Protesters remained peaceful outside the Carolina Panther’s football game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday afternoon.

This item has been corrected to show that the NFL team’s name is the Carolina Panthers, not the Charlotte Panthers.

Protests remain peaceful outside NFL game

Sunday’s NFL game between the Carolina Panthers and the Minnesota Vikings was played without interruption.

A group of around 100 demonstrators gathered across the street from Bank of America Stadium to keep up the pressure in the aftermath of the death of Keith Lamont Scott.

On Sunday, protesters led by a man with a bullhorn across the street from Bank of America Stadium were surrounded by at least two dozen police officers on bicycles. Their message competed with the noise of fans streaming toward the stadium and an impromptu jazz band playing tunes less than a block away.

When the national anthem was played, the protesters all dropped to one knee as many NFL players have been doing for weeks to call attention to issues, including police shootings. Inside the stadium, Carolina safety Marcus Ball raised his fist during the anthem.

Later Sunday, protesters clambered onto Interstate 277 through the city’s downtown and began to block traffic until police arrived. The protesters ran, but one fell in front of an all-terrain vehicle operated by a Greensboro police officer helping the Charlotte force, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said. The protester, 26-year-old Donnell Jones of Missouri, was not hurt and was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, police said.

FILE - In this Thursday, Sept. 22, 2016 file photo, protesters block I-277 during a third night of unrest following Tuesday's police fatal shooting of Keith Lamont Scott in Charlotte, N.C. Protesters who have filled the streets to push for the release of video of Scott's shooting could see their task get much harder if Charlotte authorities do not share the footage within a week. A North Carolina law that takes effect Oct. 1 will declare that the video is not a public record and that only a judge can release it. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome, File)

Video footage police released Saturday of the Scott shooting incident hasn’t settled questions about whether he threatened authorities with a gun before he was felled by a black officer. Police Chief Kerr Putney said Saturday that Scott was “absolutely in possession of a handgun,” adding that, while officers didn’t break the law, the State Bureau of Investigation continues to pursue the case.

While police say Scott had a gun, residents contend he was unarmed. It’s not apparent in the video if he’s holding anything shortly before he was shot. The dramatic video released by Charlotte police shows officers with guns drawn surrounding the man just before the shooting.

Police also released photos on Saturday of what they said was a loaded handgun found at the scene, adding it bore Scott’s DNA and fingerprints. They also said Scott had marijuana.

In the police vehicle dashboard camera video released Saturday night, Scott could be seen slowly backing away from his SUV with his hands down. Four shots are heard in quick succession, and he crumples to the ground mortally wounded.

Protests against Scott’s fatal shooting were largely peaceful after the dashboard camera and police body-cam videos were released. Police blocked off downtown streets late into the night Saturday as they had throughout the day, allowing demonstrators to take over roadways without confrontations with vehicles.

Away from the marching, others said the videos increased their doubt about the police explanation that Scott’s shooting was necessary and justified. Reda Burch, one of the dozens of people who stopped by a makeshift memorial near the site where Scott died, said she has watched the police videos and doesn’t think Scott was threatening officers or that the shooting was justified.

“If he had a gun in his hand, I couldn’t see it. If he had one, he never raised it,” Burch said Sunday afternoon. “His hands never left his side. So no, I don’t see a reason to kill him.”

The videos changed the mind of Stacey Sizemore, who said that she worked in human resources for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department before leaving about six years ago. She said she knows police officers strive to protect the public, but the videos put new doubt into her mind that the shooting was necessary.

“If you’re backing up, that’s saying you don’t want a fight. You don’t want a confrontation. So that’s the part that, kind of, didn’t make it better for me.”

Relatives and their attorney have also said what they saw on the partial police video footage left them wondering why Scott was killed.

“What we know and what you should know about him is that he was an American citizen who deserved better,” said Ray Dotch, Scott’s brother-in-law.

Charlotte has been on edge ever since Scott’s death. The demonstrations reached a violent crescendo Wednesday before the National Guard was called in a day later to maintain order. Forty-four people were arrested after Wednesday’s protests, and one protester who was shot died at a hospital Thursday. City officials said police did not shoot 26-year-old Justin Carr, and a suspect was arrested. A police report said Carr had been shot in the head.

The next three nights of protests were free of property damage and violence, with organizers stressing a message of peace at the end of the week. Mayor Jennifer Roberts lifted a curfew on the city Sunday evening.

Charlotte is the latest US city to be shaken by protests and recriminations over the death of a black man at the hands of police, a list that includes Baltimore, Milwaukee, Chicago, New York and Ferguson, Missouri.