Case Study on "Understanding the Civil Court System"

Case Study 6 pages (2143 words) Sources: 4 April 14, 2018

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Understanding the Court System

Summarize the seminal facts of the case.

On 4th April, 2015, an African-American motorist, Walter L. Scott, aged 50, was asked to pull up the vehicle he was driving by a North Charleston (South Carolina) police officer, Michael T. Slager, who noticed a smashed taillight. According to the police vehicles dashcam video, the officer and Scott were having an apparently ordinary verbal exchange. However, a short while after the officer went back to his car, Scott abandoned his vehicle and fled on foot, causing Slager to run after him. On a green field adjacent to a muffler establishment, the two engaged in a fight, supposedly over the Taser Slager was bearing. An onlooker who filmed the scuffle was able to capture the officer firing the weapon at the civilian, a subsequent tussle, something hitting the grassy ground, and Scotts attempt at escaping (Cook 2015).

When Scotts back was turned away, the officer stood upright and stationary and fired at Scott eight times. A number of shots struck him and caused him to hit the ground facedown. Slager approached Scott, handcuffed him, called dispatch and reported that a man who took his Taser was down. After roughly a minute and a half, he re-contacted dispatch, reporting the man had multiple wounds and was unresponsive. Scott lost his life on the scene (Cook 2015)

Explain the main laws that have been violated in the case and the possible penalties associated

White American, Michael T. Slager, an ex-South Carolinian police officer who was accused, under state law, of shooting and killing a weaponless African-American motorist, Walter T. Scott, has been charged under federal law as well, for denying Scott his civil rights (Charleston 2016). An individual who pleads or is found guilty of manslaughter must be sentenced to a minimum mandatory 30-year prison term or awarded a death sentence.

One accusation claims the ex-officer obstructed justice and illegally used a weapon when committing the murder (Charleston 2016).

According to the federal indictment, Slager, while in the position of a law enforcement authority, denied Scott his civil rights. Another count claims he banked on his Glock Model 21 .45 caliber pistol to do so (Charleston 2016).

Yet another count, which accuses him of hindering justice, claims Slager deliberately misinformed South Carolinian Law Enforcement Division (SLED) agents of what occurred in his deadly encounter with the civilian. In particular, he purposely deceived investigators, lying that he only shot Scott when the latter advanced on him with the Taser, when the reality was that Scott was fleeing with his back to Slager when he was repeatedly shot at (Charleston 2016).

Violating an individuals civil rights could cause Slager to be awarded life imprisonment, at the maximum, and a fine of 250,000 dollars (Charleston 2016).

Explain whether the case was heard in the state or federal court system. Explain whether the case had any related jurisdictional requirements. Explain the fundamental reasons why it was necessary for the case to be heard in that particular court system.

A Charleston County Grand Jury indicted Slager on 8th June, 2015, for a murder count in breach of S.C. Code Ann. 16-3-10. On 10th May of the following year, a federal grand jury also indicted him, citing three counts: (1) Violating Title 18, U.S.C. 242 and depriving a citizen of his/her rights under the color of law; (2) Violating Title 18 U.S.C. 924(c)(1)(A)(iii) by using a weapon when committing a violent crime; (3) Violating Title 18 U.S.C. 1512(b)(3) by obstructing justice. The cases foremost trial occurred on 31st October, 2016 at a South Carolinian state court. The case lasted for over one month, concluding on 5th December, 2016 in a mistrial (SAVAGE & KENT 2017).

Indisputably, all the aforementioned charges are grounded in the precise same facts: Scotts fatal shooting by Slager on the 4th of April, 2014, when the latter was trying to arrest him. The defendants aimed at defending against two prosecutions occurring simultaneously in different courts on precisely identical grounds for the very same offense. The burden was unjust, crushing, unfair, slow, extremely prejudicial, and in violation of the basic principles of unusual and cruel punishment, due process and double jeopardy. The state and federal governments have gained from the joint investigation and prosecution. Considerable financial, investigative, emotional, and physical burdens have been linked to the case. Most importantly, an overwhelmingly large burden has been with regard to the time devoted to dual prosecution defense. In the end, dual prosecution proved entirely pointless to judicial ends, undermining the criminal processs effective administration. This is particularly the case when dual prosecution totally overlaps, entails the precise same facts, and occurs simultaneously, as with Slagers case. The doctrine of dual sovereignty has, for long, been maintained as a Double Jeopardy Clause exception. In general, dual sovereignty allows two distinct sovereigns to award punishment for the very same criminal conduct (SAVAGE & KENT, 2017).

The guilty declaration resolved the state as well as federal cases that were pending against Slager. Earlier, jury selection for Slagers federal trial was scheduled for commencement on 9th May, 2017, with the date for the state trial set three months later. Guilty plea documents reveal that Slager, when in the capacity of a law enforcement official, intentionally utilized deadly force to deal with Scott despite it being objectively unreasonable in those circumstances. Scott was stopped by Slager for a malfunctioning taillight. After a brief exchange, Scott ran away and was pursued by Slager. Slager pulled out his Taser, a scuffle resulted, and Scott fell down. He was able to get back up and attempt to flee once again. He was weaponless and with his back to Slager when the latter fired at him eight times using the department-issued weapon. Of the eight shots, five found their mark, entering Scotts body from behind. He lost his life to the injuries sustained from Slagers shots on the scene itself (Department of Justice 2017).

According to Solicitor Wilson, this conviction constitutes the ideal example of how strong results are achievable through state and federal collaboration. The justice department contributed to ensure Scotts family obtained justice with the conviction, as well as to ensuring the communitys progress via hard work. The disposition resulted from superior quality work on the part of local and state law enforcers. Solicitor Wilson as well as federal-level prosecutors were allowed a chance at addressing the Court during sentencing. SLED and the Columbia Division of the FBI together worked on the case. Prosecution for the case at the federal level involved Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alyssa Richardson and Eric Klumb of South Carolina District, Rose Gibson, Trial Attorney of the justice departments civil rights division, and Jared Fishman, Special Litigation Counsel. State level prosecution of the case involved the 9th Judicial Circuits Solicitor Office and Scarlett A. Wilson (Department of Justice 2017).

Summarize the outcome of the case and indicate whether the judge or jury made the decision.

David Norton, United States District Judge, gave the go-ahead for transferring Slager to federal prison. Norton explained the precise grounds for his awarding the ex-law enforcement officer a 20-year prison sentence. When deciding the civil rights breach baseline, the Judge was in agreement with federal-level prosecutors that the ex-cop perpetrated second-degree murder and not manslaughter, which was the defenses claim. Explaining the methodology employed for concluding that the incident was a second-degree murder, Judge Norton stated that to determine how reasonable Slagers heat of passion claim is when dealing with an individual who attempted to flee after he was stopped and questioned about a malfunctioning taillight, it is imperative for the court to determine what occurred just before the events the onlookers ideo displays. Further, according to the Judge, the most important factor is whether or not Scott was on top of the officer or controlling the Taser when the two engaged in a scuffle, and whether or not Slager was tased or nearly-tased by Scott. Slager claims Scott, when fighting him, yelled, \\\"Fuck the police\\\". However, words alone arent a sufficiently strong heat of passion finding for manslaughter. Slagers defense included a video expert who agreed at trial that no part of Santana\\\'s video reveals the Taser was closer to the victim than to the defendant (Manno, 2018).

Further, Judge Norton describes Slagers numerous attempts at deceiving law enforcement following the fatal shooting. He related different versions of the event to the SLED team, his colleagues who arrived on the scene shortly after the attack, at the state trial, and during federal pre-trial proceedings. The Judge also cited 5 grounds for applying justice obstruction enhancement to the case, including Slager\\\'s misinformation to SLED and the North Carolinian Police Department, his retrieval of the Taser and leaving it beside Scott prior to returning it to its holster, thus meddling with the scene of crime, and his conflicting statements during the state and federal trials. Nortons conclusion was: fatally shooting an individual for attempting to escape, failing to follow instructions, and trying to flee following… READ MORE

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