Curfew Lifted In Charlotte After Days Of Protests
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (CBSNewYork/AP) — A curfew that had been in effect for three days was lifted Sunday, amid days of protests following a deadly police shooting.
The police-involved shooting that killed Keith Lamont Scott last week has led to days of protests, which prompted a midnight to 6 a.m. curfew beginning Thursday.
Earlier Sunday, about 100 protesters kneeled outside the stadium in Charlotte as the national anthem was played before the NFL game inside.
The protesters chanted along to the beat of a brass band, and then were drowned out by noise from inside the stadium. Fans gathered along the ramps inside the stadium and watched the scene below before the Vikings and Panthers game.
Officers wearing black riot gear ringed the stadium, and police on bicycles lined up wheel-to-wheel to surround the protesters -- demonstrating after the shooting death last week of a man by a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer.
When the national anthem was played, the protesters all dropped to one knee as many NFL players have been doing for weeks to call more attention to issues including police shootings. Inside the stadium, Carolina safety Marcus Ball raised his fist during the anthem.
"Things have happened and we need to actually hold our police accountable," said protester Lorenzo Mack. "They are people. They're here to protect us, and sometimes it doesn't happen that way. At some point, we have hold people accountable."
On Saturday, Charlotte police released dramatic body and dashboard camera footage of the shooting of Scott, who is black, after demonstrations that have coalesced around demands that the public see the video.
Watch: Charlotte Police Release Body, Dash Cam Footage Of Keith Scott Shooting
Police said Scott had a gun, though residents have said he was unarmed.
"At every encounter, people can make a decision to follow lawful, loud verbal commands," said Charlotte-Mecklenburg police Chief Kerr Putney.
Warning: Disturbing Video.
The two video clips show officers with guns drawn surrounding a black man with his hands at his side before shots are fired and he buckles and falls. It's unclear if there was anything in the man's hands in the footage, which has done little to assuage his relatives.
Protesters marched through the streets of a city on edge after Scott's shooting death. The demonstrations reached a violent crescendo on Wednesday before the National Guard was called in a day later to maintain order.
Photos: Violence Erupts In Charlotte For Second Night In Row
The next two nights of protests were free of property damage and violence, with organizers stressing a message of peace at the end of the week.
As CBS News' Don Champion reported, city leaders late Sunday were still on edge over nightly protests. They again used extra officers and National Guardsmen to keep order Sunday.
Charlotte is the latest U.S. city to be shaken by protests and recriminations over the death of a black man at the hands of police, a list that includes Baltimore, Milwaukee, Chicago, New York and Ferguson, Missouri.
On Monday, companies in Charlotte's Uptown area will try to get back to business. Some closed last week after protests turned violent.
Toussaint Romain, a local public defender, has been hailed a peacemaker during the tension-filled protests. He fears that as Scott's case drops from the headlines, calls for policing reforms will get drowned out.
"It's going to take for the people to stand up and say enough is enough -- and not just the people out here, but everyone to say, 'We're in this together.'"
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