Trial begins in police shooting of North Charleston man

The trial of a former police officer accused of murdering an unarmed man during a traffic stop began today in Charleston, S.C. Michael Slager shot Walter Scott in the back eight times as Scott ran away from him in April 2015. A bystander captured the incident on cellphone video. Prosecutors said in opening statements Scott might have provoked Slager by grabbing his stun gun, but that did not justify the officer’s actions. Family and friends testified Scott was a “loving and kind person” and they didn’t know why he ran from the stop. Defense attorneys said it might have been because he was behind on child support payments, but they didn’t know for sure.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.