(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) A white police officer caught on video fatally shooting a black man has been fired from the South Carolina police force, officials said Wednesday.
North Charleston city police officer Michael Slager, 33, was arrested and charged with murder Tuesday after cell phone video surfaced that shows him shooting 50-year-old Walter Scott eight times in the back during a traffic stop April 4.
Mayor Keith Summey who announced the termination, said the city had received a grant to procure 150 police body cameras in addition to the 101 cameras that had been previously ordered.
The announcement came as protesters held a rally in the city to demand justice for the deadly shooting.
Chats of "Black lives matter" were echoed by dozens of demonstrators outside City Hall on Wednesday morning.
The slogan became a rallying cry for protesters following a series of police-involved killings of unarmed blacks in Missouri, New York and Ohio. The killings have stirred racial tensions, setting off nationwide protests over perceived injustices within the U.S. justice system.
Saturday's incident began after the victim's car was stopped for having a broken tail tight, during which a scuffle ensues and the officer used a stun gun on Scott.
A video of the shooting released by local media captures the moments following the incident as Scott apparently flees from the officer. The video then shows the officer drawing his pistol and shooting eight times at Scott, who falls face first to the ground.
Earlier Wednesday, Scott's family praised the release of the video documenting the killing.
The shooting "would have never come to light" without the video, Walter Scott Sr told NBC news. "They would have swept it under the rug, like they did with many others."
U.S. Sen. Tim Scott described the video as "deeply troubling.
"It is clear the killing of #WalterScott was unnecessary&avoidable; my prayers are with the Scott family as they go through this ordeal," he said Wednesday on Twitter.
The Justice Department said it would "take appropriate action in light of the evidence and developments" and that its Civil Rights Division, along with the South Carolina U.S. Attorney's Office and the FBI, will work on the investigation.
Blacks make up about 47.1 percent of North Charleston, according to 2010 U.S. Census Bureau statistics. The city is South Carolina's third-largest with about 100,000 residents.
The city's police force is about 80 percent white, according to local media.
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