Body camera and dashboard videos released Saturday by Charlotte police do not show Keith Lamont Scott holding or pointing a gun at officers.
They do, however, show Scott walking back from police before he was shot four times after being repeatedly told to drop a weapon.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney released the footage after announcing his decision at a Saturday afternoon news conference.
Other evidence Putney released included pictures of a handgun that he said was recovered at the scene and an ankle holster he said that Scott was wearing.
Putney's move came on the fifth day of demonstrations following Tuesday's shooting of Scott, 43, by Officer Brentley Vinson. Both men are African American.
Scott was the father of seven. Vinson, 26, has been on the force since 2014. He was placed on administrative leave after the shooting.
On Friday, attorneys for Scott's family released cellphone video taken by his wife, Rakeyia, which raised further questions on whether he had a gun.
The family has contended that Scott did not have a weapon.
The dash-cam video Putney released Saturday shows Scott stepping out of his white SUV and walking back from police when the four shots can be heard being fired from an angle outside of the camera's view.
Vinson was not wearing a body camera. The released body footage was from another officer.
That video, shot at a closer range, shows Scott stepping out of his vehicle. His image is then immediately blocked by another officer.
After a few seconds — the video is silent — Scott is shown on the ground as officers converge on him. The sound then kicks in.
A statement Putney also released said that officers were in the apartment complex to serve a warrant on another man in an unrelated incident when they saw Scott in his car.
They observed marijuana — "that was not the priority" he earlier told reporters — and things changed once officers spotted the gun.
"When you're in possession of marijuana and then you have a gun, that's a public-safety issue that our officers are going to address."
Reuters contributed to this report.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.