A man stands on a car in uptown Charlotte, NC to protest police brutality
North Carolina governor declares a state of emergency in Charlotte amid violent protests over fatal cop shooting of black man.
If you’ve just joined us, a man is on life support after being shot in the head as a peaceful protest over the fatal police shooting of a black man turned ugly in America’s North Carolina.
The city of Charlotte said a civilian shot the man in an announcement on its Twitter feed. Charlotte Medic tweeted that the person was injured and taken to hospital on Wednesday night, but didn’t give details.
After the shooting, protesters began throwing bottles, dirt clods and fireworks at the officers. The police fired flash grenades and then tear gas shells, dispersing a crowd of several hundreds. Protesters responded by hurling trash cans and potted plants.
But groups of protesters kept marching around downtown, followed by police in riot gear who continued to fire tear gas at them.
Anger spilled out on the streets following the shooting of a 43-year-old man, Keith Lamont Scott, who was killed by the police on Tuesday. Police said Scott had been repeatedly told to drop his handgun before he was shot.
But his family dispute that narrative and say he was reading a book.
His death sparked violent protests on Tuesday night, leaving 16 officers injured.
The second night of protests began peacefully but the demonstration was interrupted by gunfire and a man in the crowd was injured. The city initially said he had been killed but then issued a clarification on Twitter.
Protesters then threw bottles and fireworks at the officers, who were lined up in riot gear. Police fired flash grenades and tear gas to repel the crowds.
The use of lethal police force against African Americans has been the subject of nationwide protests across the US for two years.
To date, law enforcement officials have fatally shot 702 people this year, 163 of them black men, according to a Washington Post database tracking fatal police shootings.
