CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A judge has agreed to release surveillance video that captured the deadly shooting during the September 2016 riots in uptown Charlotte.
(SURVEILLANCE VIDEO: Deadly uptown protest shooting)
[IMAGES: Protests spiral into violence in uptown Charlotte]
Judge Robert Ervin heard arguments on why the video should be released last week, and Tuesday, he signed off on the decision.
The order covers video from eight different locations during the protests from Sept. 21 through Sept. 24, when rioters took to the streets following the deadly officer-involved shooting of Keith Scott.
(Justin Carr)
The video includes a clip near the Omni Hotel that shows the moment when Justin Carr was shot and killed.
In the video of the scene in front of the hotel, at first, you just see the crowds taking over the streets of uptown. Then, there's the flash of a gunshot and terrified crowds dispersing in complete panic.
In the crowd was a Channel 9 crew, including anchor Paul Boyd with a national security expert Ross Bulla.
"It brought back the reality of the night,” Bulla said. “It reminds you just how close you were. I knew we were literally next to a shooting and a murder that night, and I knew that we were in harm's way, but the reality definitely sinks in when you can see it from that vantage point."
Police arrested Rayquan Borum two days later.
A prosecutor said Borum admitted to the shooting but in August, Borum pleaded not guilty and said he will take his case to trial.
[PAST COVERAGE: Man pleads not guilty to shooting, killing man during Charlotte protests]
The prosecutor and Borum’s attorney objected to the release of the specific video clip.
But Ervin said in the court order the “release of the recordings would not create a threat to the fair, impartial and orderly administration of justice and would not have a material impact on Mr. Borum’s right to a fair trial.”
(Rayquan Borum)
Robert Dawkins with Action NC, a group that has pushed for more openness in police shootings, said the group had wanted the videos released for a long time.
“Hopefully, we’re seeing this as an example of people listening and trying to make the system more transparent,” Dawkins said.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police did not object to the release of the video.
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