( CNN ) On Tuesday , a white police officer in North Charleston , South Carolina , was charged with murder for shooting an unarmed black man in the back . Officer Michael Slager was arrested after raw video surfaced showing him firing numerous shots at Walter Scott as Scott ran away from a traffic stop . The video footage contradicts Slager 's statement that he felt threatened after Scott allegedly took his stun gun during a scuffle . The Post and Courier reported that the FBI has opened an investigation into the shooting death along with the State Law Enforcement Division , while the South Carolina attorney general is investigating possible civil rights violations . Now , after watching the footage — which should remain in your memory for a long time to come — one could say that Slager shot Scott like a dog . But then again , dogs usually are not treated this badly . But the man was shot like a runaway slave . In this case , there was clear documented evidence of what occurred , and no room for fabrications . Most police fatal shootings do not result in indictments because prosecutors conclude they are justifiable . The police officer can always plant a gun on the suspect he shot to death , or like Slager , apparently place a Taser near Scott 's body and concoct some story that his life was in danger . `` We ca n't bring Mr. Scott back , but something like this today can have a bigger precedence than just what happened here with Mr. Scott . Because what happened today does n't happen all the time , '' said L. Chris Stewart , an attorney for the Scott family , at a press conference . `` I do n't think that all police officers are bad cops , but there are some bad ones out there . And I do n't want to see anyone get shot down the way that my brother got shot down , '' said Anthony Scott , brother of the victim . `` What if there was no video ? What if there was no witness , or hero as I call him , to come forward ? Then this would n't have happened , because as you can see , the initial reports stated something totally different . The officer said that Mr. Scott attacked him and pulled his Taser and tried to use it on him . But somebody was watching , '' Stewart added . `` After watching the video , the senseless shooting and taking of # WalterScott 's life was absolutely unnecessary and avoidable , '' tweeted Sen. Tim Scott . `` My heart aches for the family and our North Charleston community . I will be watching this case closely . '' Although the black community and others have been aware for years of the problem of police brutality , through personal experience and anecdotes , the data confirm that police use of deadly force is a black and white issue . A ProPublica analysis of police shootings from 2010 to 2012 found that young black males are 21 times more likely to be fatally shot by the police than young white males . And 67 % of teens killed while fleeing or resisting arrest were black . Of the whites who are killed by cops , 91 % are killed by white cops . Sixty-eight percent of people of color who are killed by police are also killed by white officers . Furthermore , 10 % of police involved in fatal shootings are black , and 78 % of the people killed by black officers are black . According to Cynthia Lee of George Washington University Law School , the disproportionate representation of blacks and other people of color in police shootings is due to the role of racial stereotypes by police . Racial stereotypes , Lee argues , subconsciously influence an officer 's decision on whether to use deadly force , even if the police do not consciously decide to use deadly force based on race . A simple question posed to the officer by a black person could be perceived as a threat to the officer 's authority . What 's more , a Washington State University study on deadly force found that participants felt more threatened in scenarios involving black suspects , suggesting participants `` held subconscious biases associating blacks and threats . '' Scott is the latest in a long line of black bodies , from Michael Brown in Ferguson , Missouri , and Eric Garner in Staten Island , to John Crawford III near Dayton , Ohio , and Tanisha Anderson and Tamir Rice in Cleveland . In this case , the bystander video of Scott 's killing and the cover-up of the crime by Slager made the difference . Otherwise , the bogus narrative of the good white cop protecting himself from the menacing black thug may have prevailed . What happened in North Charleston tells us the epidemic of police deadly force has not died . And yet , the mobilization and heightened consciousness of people across the nation have kept the issue on the front burner . The taking of black lives by the police remains a crisis situation in America that must be addressed , because # BlackLivesMatter . May Walter Scott rest in peace . The arrest and charging of Officer Michael Slager is a rare event that must be celebrated for the small victory that it is , in the midst of unspeakable tragedy . But this is by no means over .
A white police officer in South Carolina is charged with killing an unarmed black man in the back . David Love : What happened tells us the epidemic of police deadly force against black people continues .