Former S.C. police officer pleads guilty in 2015 shooting
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Former North Charleston Police Officer Michael Slager, accused of federal civil rights violations in the 2015 shooting death of Walter Scott, pleaded guilty Tuesday in a Charleston federal courtroom.
Slager’s guilty plea was part of behind-the-scenes plea negotiations that included an agreement by 9th Circuit Solicitor Scarlett Wilson to drop pending state murder charges against Slager.
Shortly before noon Tuesday, a statement about Slager was released by the office of Andy Savage, one of his lawyers.
“This afternoon Michael Slager will enter a guilty plea to using excessive force in violation of 18 USC Section 242 as he attempted to arrest Walter Scott on April 4, 2015.
“We hope that Michael’s acceptance of responsibility will help the Scott family as they continue to grieve their loss.
“As a sentencing date has not yet been determined, we will refrain from further comment at this time,” the statement said.
Slager, 35, who was fired after a viral video emerged days after the shooting, was slated to go on trial in Charleston later this month for federal charges of civil rights violations and obstruction of justice.
A guilty plea avoids a federal trial. Moreover, people who plead guilty nearly always get a lesser sentence than if a jury were to find him guilty after a trial. Slager will likely face a stint in federal prison — widely regarded as a more desirable alternative than a sentence in state prison.
It will be up to U.S. Judge David Norton to sentence Slager. But a sentencing hearing is not expected to take place for at least several months. Between now and then, federal probation investigators will prepare a detailed sentencing recommendation.
Slager’s shooting of Scott, as Scott was some 20 yards away and apparently fleeing, was caught on a cellphone video by a passer-by and, within days, was played repeatedly on national television news shows and internet sites. It was viewed by millions.
Since Scott, who was not armed, was obviously running away, it was perhaps the most shocking of all police shooting videos shown on television in the past few years. The video showed Slager bracing his Glock pistol with two hands and shooting at Scott as if he, Slager, were at a target range.
The video helped spark a national conversation about the use of deadly force and the shooting of black suspects by white officers. Slager is white; Scott, who was 50, is black.
Six months after the shooting, without a lawsuit being filed, the city of North Charleston reached a $6.5 million settlement with Scott’s family.
A five-week trial in December in state court Charleston on murder charges resulted in a mistrial due to a hung jury.
According to an order issued by Norton, jury selection for Slager’s upcoming federal trial was to begin in Columbia on May 9 at the Matthew Perry federal courthouse. The trial was slated to begin May 15 at the Charleston federal courthouse in downtown Charleston.
Specifically, Slager was charged with a civil rights violation for taking Scott’s life without legal justification, with the use of a weapon during a crime of violence and obstruction of justice. A May 2016 indictment also alleged obstruction of justice, charging that Slager “knowingly misled State Law Enforcement Division investigators by falsely stating that he (Slager) fired his weapon at Scott while Scott was coming forward at him with a Taser.”