Alarming video shows a state trooper shooting an unarmed man after asking for his driver’s license.
A South Carolina Highway Patrol officer was fired, several weeks after a traffic stop landed a driver in the hospital with a gunshot wound in his hip.Â
Former state trooper Sean Groubert yesterday was charged with assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature. The video taken from Groubert’s patrol car, below, shows Groubert pulling up behind a car driven by Levar Jones at a gas station.
Jones is getting out of the car. It’s unclear but Groubert claims he was going to charge him with a seat belt violation.
Immediately Groubert asks Jones for his license. Jones turns and starts to go into the car, presumably to get his license.
Groubert screams “Get out of the car” and fires several times. At least one bullet made its way into Jones.
Jones after several shots are fired raises his hands and asks “Why did you shot me?”
“I just got my license! You said get my license,” Jones says. “I can’t feel my legs,” he tells the officer.Â
And he even apologizes to Groubert, a point made clear when MSNBC’s Chris Hayes tweeted the video last night.
The incident occurred on September 4. Groubert was fired September 19. He faces 20 years in jail if convicted. His attorney says he’s innocent.
Watch:
Â