Walter Scott Family Attorney: It's a Human Issue
Walter Scott was laid to rest on Saturday (April 11) in South Carolina after being fatally shot in the back by a police officer last week. Hundreds gathered at the service, which was open to the public, to celebrate Scott's life and mourn his untimely death.
During the service, Scott's daughter read a poem dedicated to her father, a veteran of the US Coast Guard, while his brother Anthony Scott asked the assembled crowd to think of his death as a reason to examine the relationship between Black men and police. "The change will come," he said, bringing to the crowd to its feet.
Chris Stewart, an attorney for the Scott family, said the death represented more than a race issue.
"It's a human issue," he said to the Associated Press. "We're getting emails from people in Arkansas telling us, 'I'm a white male, and I'm supporting this family.' Their son is going to be remembered for changing the way we look at each other."
Scott was killed in North Charleston after getting pulled over for a broken taillight. An eyewitness caught the shooting on cell phone video, and Officer Michael Slager was charged with murder as a result. Slager faces life in prison or the death penalty if convicted.
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(Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESSAP)
