One person was shot Wednesday during the second night in a row of protests in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The person was originally reported to have died, but the city of Charlotte confirmed that the unidentified victim is on life support and in critical condition. Officials say the shooting was civilian-on-civilian, and that at least one officer has sustained minor injuries and several people have been arrested. The demonstrators are protesting the fatal officer-involved shooting of Keith Lamont Scott, a 43-year-old black man, on Tuesday. Wednesday's protest started peacefully, The Charlotte Observer reports, but it turned chaotic, with a small group of protesters kicking cars and throwing bottles and police officers firing tear gas into the crowd. At one point, reporters were told by police to leave quickly, because explosives had been used and their lives were in danger. Late in the night, Gov. Pat McCrory (R) declared a state of emergency, saying he will deploy the National Guard to assist local police.
Police say that on Tuesday, an officer opened fire after Scott emerged from his car with a gun after being asked to drop the weapon multiple times. Scott's family says he did not have a gun, but rather a book in his hand, and he was waiting for his son to come home from school; police say they seized a handgun from the scene. During protests later that day, one demonstrator and more than a dozen police officers were injured.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This is a breaking news story, and has been updated throughout.
-
Hooray for Brollywood: the UK’s film industry is booming – for nowIn The Spotlight US production giants are moving operations across the pond, but Trump tariffs threaten to bring British golden era to a sudden end
-
Child trust funds explained as over £1.5 million remains unclaimedThe Explainer HMRC data shows hundreds of thousands of young people have yet to claim money they are entitled to
-
How historically accurate is House of Guinness?In the Spotlight The glossy Netflix show about the family behind the world-famous stout mixes fact with fiction
-
Supreme Court rules for Fed’s Cook in Trump feudSpeed Read Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook can remain in her role following Trump’s attempts to oust her
-
Judge rules Trump illegally targeted Gaza protestersSpeed Read The Trump administration’s push to arrest and deport international students for supporting Palestine is deemed illegal
-
Trump: US cities should be military ‘training grounds’Speed Read In a hastily assembled summit, Trump said he wants the military to fight the ‘enemy within’ the US
-
US government shuts down amid health care standoffSpeed Read Democrats said they won’t vote for a deal that doesn’t renew Affordable Care Act health care subsidies
-
YouTube to pay Trump $22M over Jan. 6 expulsionSpeed Read The president accused the company of censorship following the suspension of accounts post-Capitol riot
-
Oregon sues to stop Trump military deploymentSpeed Read The president wants to send the National Guard into Portland
-
Trump declares new tariffs on drugs, trucks, furnitureSpeed Read He's putting tariffs of 25% on semi trucks, 30% on upholstered furniture, 50% on kitchen and bathroom cabinetry and 100% on certain drugs
-
Amazon reaches ‘historic’ $2.5B Prime settlementspeed read The company allegedly tricked customers into signing up for Prime membership that was then difficult to cancel
