VIDEO: US cop charged with murder after shooting fleeing black man

A white South Carolina police officer has been charged with murder hours after authorities saw a dramatic video that appears to show him shooting a fleeing black man several times in the back.

North Charleston mayor Keith Summey announced the charges at a hastily-called news conference in which he said City Patrolman Michael Slager made “a bad decision”.

The shooting, which began as a traffic stop, occurred as Americans grapple with issues of trust between police and minority communities after a series of deaths of unarmed black men at the hands of officers.

* Warning readers may find this video distressing as it contains graphic violence.

Source: The Post and Courier

They include the deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner on Staten Island, New York. Both sparked protests nationwide.

In the Charleston case, authorities said the victim, Walter Scott, 50, was shot after the officer had already hit him with a stun gun.

“When you’re wrong, you’re wrong,” Mr Summey said. “When you make a bad decision, don’t care if you’re behind the shield or a citizen on the street, you have to live with that decision.”