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Protests peaceful outside NFL game in Charlotte

 
Published Sept. 26, 2016

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Nightly protests have shaken the city of Charlotte since the shooting death of a black man by police last week, but Sunday's NFL game between the Carolina Panthers and the Minnesota Vikings was played without interruption.

A group of around 100 demonstrators gathered across the street from Bank of America Stadium to keep up the pressure in the aftermath of the death of Keith Lamont Scott. The 43-year-old man was shot and killed Tuesday after a confrontation with Charlotte police. Six nights of protests have followed, the first two of them violent.

On Sunday, protesters led by a man with a bullhorn across the street from Bank of America Stadium were surrounded by at least two dozen police officers on bicycles. Their message competed with the noise of fans streaming toward the stadium and an impromptu jazz band playing tunes less than a block away.

When the national anthem was played, the protesters all dropped to one knee as many NFL players have been doing for weeks to call attention to issues, including police shootings. Inside the stadium, Carolina safety Marcus Ball raised his fist during the anthem.

Later Sunday, protesters clambered onto Interstate 277 through the city's downtown and began to block traffic until police arrived. The protesters ran, but one fell in front of an all-terrain vehicle operated by a Greensboro police officer helping the Charlotte force, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said. The protester, 26-year-old Donnell Jones of Missouri, was not hurt and was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, police said.

Video footage police released Saturday of the Scott shooting incident hasn't settled questions about whether he threatened authorities with a gun before he was felled by a black officer. Police Chief Kerr Putney said Saturday that Scott was "absolutely in possession of a handgun," adding that, while officers didn't break the law, the State Bureau of Investigation continues to pursue the case.

While police say Scott had a gun, residents contend he was unarmed. It's not apparent in the video if he's holding anything shortly before he was shot.