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Funeral Held For Walter Scott

by Lauren Barbato

Walter Scott, the 50-year-old South Carolina man who was fatally shot by police officer Michael Slager, was laid to rest on Saturday in Charleston. According to CNN, hundreds of mourners came out for Scott's funeral service, which included a procession through the streets of Charleston. A U.S. Coast Guard veteran, Scott's casket was adorned with an American flag as it was wheeled into W.O.R.D. Ministries Christian Center before his burial.

Scott, who was black, was killed one week ago after he was allegedly pulled over by Slager, a white police officer, for a broken taillight. As Slager returned to his police vehicle, Scott ran from his car and into a nearby park. Slager reportedly followed on foot and used a stun gun on Scott.

Cellphone video footage captured by a passer-by and publicly released earlier this week showed Scott stumbling from the ground, projectile trails from the stun gun hanging off him. As he continues to run away from Slager, the police officer can be seen firing at least eight shots at Scott's turned back, fatally wounding him.

Slager first told his lawyers that Scott allegedly grabbed his stun gun, and he feared his life was in danger. Once the video footage was released to the public, Slager's attorney told the Daily Beast he dropped the young officer as his client.

Now, the officer is facing murder charges, and is currently being held without bail. However, a new witness has stepped forward this week, telling CNN that she saw a brief scuffle between Slager and Scott. "It was like a tussle type of thing, like, you know, like, 'What do you want?' or 'What did I do?' type of thing," witness Gwen Nichols told the news source.But on Saturday, mourners didn't want to relive the deadly shooting but remember the man, the father, and the Coast Guard veteran. According to The Guardian, the church, where Scott's family worships every Sunday, was filled to capacity. The overflow of mourners waited outside."He was a good guy, wonderful, we never had no problems," Rodney, a mourner who said he was of neighbor of Scott's told The Guardian. "We looked after each other in the neighborhood. This should never have happened to him."

"His legacy is going to live on, and it's going to live on through his family," the Scott family lawyer told reporters after the funeral service.

Image: Getty Images