Lawyers representing the family of Keith Lamont Scott—the man whose fatal shooting by police officer Brently Vinson on Tuesday (September 20) sparked three nights of protest in Charlotte—released a cell phone video today (September 23) that captures the moments before and after shooting.
The two-and-a-half minute video, recorded by Keith’s widow Rakeyia Scott and published by The New York Times, does not show the actual shooting, but the fatal gunshots are audible. It does, however, show Rakeyia’s point of view of officers near Scott’s car as they demand he show his hands, and documents Rakeyia’s pleas for officers to not kill her husband.
For those who cannot watch the video, but want to know what happened, the Times offered the following transcript:
OFFICER: Hands up!
RAKEYIA SCOTT: Don’t shoot him. Don’t shoot him. He has no weapon. He has no weapon. Don’t shoot him.
OFFICER: Don’t shoot. Drop the gun. Drop the fucking gun.
RAKEYIA SCOTT: Don’t shoot him. Don’t shoot him.
OFFICER: Drop the gun.
RAKEYIA SCOTT: He didn’t do anything.
OFFICER: Drop the gun. Drop the gun.
RAKEYIA SCOTT: He doesn’t have a gun. He has a T.B.I. (Traumatic Brain Injury).
OFFICER: Drop the gun.
RAKEYIA SCOTT: He is not going to do anything to you guys.
RAKEYIA SCOTT: He just took his medicine.
OFFICER: Drop the gun. Let me get a fucking baton over here. [muffled]
RAKEYIA SCOTT: Keith, don’t let them break the windows. Come on out the car.
OFFICER: [muffled]
OFFICER: Drop the gun.
RAKEYIA SCOTT: Keith! Don’t you do it.
OFFICER: Drop the gun.
RAKEYIA SCOTT: Keith, get out the car. Keith! Keith! Don’t you do it! Don’t you do it! Keith!
OFFICER: Drop the gun.
RAKEYIA SCOTT:Keith! Keith! Keith! Don’t you do it! [SHOTS]
RAKEYIA SCOTT: Fuck. Did you shoot him? Did you shoot him? Did you shoot him? He better not be fucking dead.He better not be fucking dead. I know that fucking much. I know that much. He better not be dead. I’m not going to come near you. I’m going to record, though. I’m not coming near you. I’m going to record, though.He better be alive because …I come You better be alive. How about that?Yes, we here, over here at 50 … 50 …9453 Lexington Court. These are the police officers that shot my husband, and he better live. He better live. Because he didn’t do nothing to them.
OFFICER: Is everybody good? Are you good?
RAKEYIA SCOTT: He good. Nobody … touch nobody, so they’re all good.
OFFICER: You good?
RAKEYIA SCOTT: I know he better live. I know he better live. How about that I’m not coming to you guys, but he’d better live. He better live. You all hear it, you see this, right? He better live.
OFFICER: [muffled]
RAKEYIA SCOTT: He better live. I swear, he better live. Yep, he better live. He better fucking live. He better live. Where is…He better fucking live, and I can’t even leave the damn…I ain’t going nowhere. I’m staying in the same damn spot. What the fuck. That’s O.K. did you all call the police? I mean, did you all call an ambulance?
Here’s the video, for those who want to watch: