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CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — The attorney for a man in the car with Walter Scott before Scott was killed by a North Charleston police officer said Wednesday his client heard the crackle of a Taser and shots fired but didn't see the incident.
Attorney Mark Peper said that according to his client, Pierre D. Fulton, there was no confrontation between officer Michael Slager and Scott when Scott was pulled April 4 for a broken tail light.
Scott, who is black, later ran and a cellphone video showed Slager, who is white, firing eight shots at Scott in an incident that renewed the national debate over the shooting of blacks by white police officers.
Fulton on Monday released a statement saying he didn't know why Scott ran after his car was stopped. Peper said his client has also given a statement to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
Following the stop "there was never a conversation between Pierre and Walter regarding the reason for the stop, what his intentions were - anything along those lines," Peper said.
Scott was behind $18,000 in his child support payments and family members have said he may have run because he was worried about going to jail.
Peper says that from where Scott's car was parked, his client could see Slager chase after Scott. "As they turned the corner, he wasn't able to see anything that occurred," he said.
Peper said while his client heard the Taser followed by the gunshots "he doesn't recall the timing or how many seconds between it. All that's a bit foggy."
Peper said the traffic stop occurred after Scott and Fulton went to Hardees for breakfast and then went to a food pantry and dropped off some food at Fulton's house.
"They were heading to Walter Scott's house to eventually have a cookout that afternoon," Peper said.
Family members said earlier the two were headed to an auto parts store at the time. Peper said they may have had errands planned but his client said they were eventually heading to Scott's house.
He said his client has asked for privacy so he can deal with the death of his friend.
The Associated Press has stopped by Fulton's house three times attempting to interview him, leaving messages each time.
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