CNN and MSNBC are all over this story today. Yesterday there was an altercation where police fatally shot a black man and now everyone is up in arms after a cellphone video of the shooting has been released.
Here’s the story from CNN:
The graphic video shows a deadly encounter outside a convenience store.
Two police officers pin down Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old black man, then shoot him as he lies on the ground.
The video, shared widely on social media, quickly sparked local protests and drew national attention.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, police say they came to the scene early Tuesday after an anonymous 911 caller reported a man threatening him with a gun.
Accounts of what happened next depend on whom you ask.
Sterling is dead. Authorities are investigating. And many questions remain unanswered.
The video starts with the camera facing a car dashboard. A single pop is heard, and then someone yells, “Get on the ground.”
Another pop follows.
The camera then pans up to two officers confronting a man in a red shirt, which Jordan says is Sterling. One officer brings Sterling to the ground. Once he’s down, the officer begins to assist a second officer in restraining Sterling.
“He’s got a gun,” someone says seconds later.
An officer can be seen drawing something from his waist — it’s not clear what the object is.
More yelling ensues, after which two bangs can be heard. The video appears to have been recorded by a witness in a nearby car.
Here’s the GRAPHIC VIDEO described above. It’s high quality so feel free to watch it full screen.
But whether or not Sterling had a gun can’t be seen on the video, nor what he was doing with his right hand when the officer was yelling for him not to move.
A lot of people are drawing conclusions based on this video and I believe that’s a mistake. It’s simply too difficult to see all the pertinent details in the video to draw a conclusion. But that hasn’t stopped the NAACP for already calling on the police chief to be fired in a presser this morning.