Chester Mayor tried to fire officers involved in police shooting. Here’s what we know.
Chester Mayor Wanda Stringfellow called for the firing Monday night of the three police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Ariane McCree. The motion, during the city council meeting, failed by a 4-2 vote.
The three officers remain employed by the Chester Police Department, said Police Chief Eric Williams.
Stringfellow said during the town council meeting that the officers failed to follow police procedures for using body cameras. One officer had no body camera, and another officer had body cam video but no audio. That officer turned his camera on well into the process, causing the lack of audio, police have said.
“This isn’t an issue of a white officer shooting a black man,” Stringfellow said as she addressed the council during the meeting, which was held online by Zoom. “This is an issue of police officers not following the policy that they should be adhering to on a daily basis.”
Stringfellow could not be reached Tuesday for comment.
McCree, 26, died November 23, 2019, after a shoplifting incident outside of Walmart in Chester. He was handcuffed at the time of the shooting. McCree had a gun and aimed it at officers, law enforcement and prosecutor officials said.
The three officers involved in the shooting have not been identified.
South Carolina prosecutors called the shooting by police self-defense and have brought no criminal charges against the officers.
The case captured renewed interest after the death of George Floyd in police custody. Chester Police Department Chief Eric Williams released the bodycam video after The Herald and others asked that it be made public.
Williams said the officer turned on his body cam when the incident already was in progress. However, the body cam has a one-minute, 55-seconds automatic video backup where sound is not captured. The sound activates when the officer turns the body cam on.
After a news conference held by police June 16 where the bodycam video was shown, Stringfellow told The Herald she wanted the officers fired because they did not follow police procedures for camera use. She said she would bring the issue up at this week’s council meeting, which she did.
Williams said he viewed the city council meeting, and witnessed the vote after the mayor’s proposal.
Chester City Council member Angela Douglas also confirmed that the council voted against firing the officers. The Herald’s efforts to reach other city council members and Chester City Administrator Stephanie Jackson were unsuccessful.
In a press conference on June 16, Williams confirmed not wearing a body cam is a violation of the Chester Police Department’s rules, and the officer has been reprimanded.
He did not comment on how the officer was disciplined.
Williams said he does not get involved in politics and will continue to serve the city’s residents, along with his officers.
“I’m going to do what’s right, I will do the job right, and I am not involved in politics,” Williams said. “Even though we are going through a tough situation, we are still going to provide the professional services this community deserves,” Williams said.
