US police shooting leads to city settlement

The US city in South Carolina announced the settlement of $6.5 million (5.76 million euros) on Thursday, after the council voted unaminously to approve the deal. Members of the victim's family were present at the time of the announcement.

"This is a very difficult period for the Scott family," said Mayor Keith Summey in a written statement. "I know they are glad to have this part behind them so their healing process can continue."

Scott, 50, was shot in the back five times by police officer Michael Slager on April 4 after fleeing a traffic stop. A person who happened to be present at the scene managed to capture the incident with a cell phone, and the footage, which showed Slager firing eight times as Scott fled, appeared to contradict the police officer's claim that Scott had accosted him.

Slager, who was fired from the police force following his arrest, was charged with murder in June. He faces a possible life sentence.

The death of Scott followed several other cases involving unarmed black men killed by police officers. On August 9, 2014, a white police officer named Darren Wilson shot and killed a black teenager named Michael Brown, setting off massive protests in the city of Ferguson, Missouri. Earlier that summer, another black man, Eric Garner, was killed when a New York police officer put him in a chokehold. The decision not to indict the the police officer in December set off similar protests.

blc/msh (AFP, AP)