N.C. Officer Won’t Be Charged in Killing
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A white police officer who fatally shot an unarmed black motorist last month will not be prosecuted for the killing, the district attorney said Monday.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Michael Marlow shot James Cooper during a traffic stop Nov. 19. The officer said Cooper ignored orders not to get out of the car.
Marlow said Cooper, 19, leaned in the car and seemed to reach into his pants. Fearing he was reaching for a gun, the officer fired five shots.
Cooper’s 4-year-old daughter was in the back seat. She was not harmed.
Dist. Atty. Peter Gilchrist said the police investigation showed the officer defended himself from the threat of harm.
No incidents were reported in Charlotte and leaders in the black community appealed for calm, although the local NAACP expressed its dissatisfaction with the decision.
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