Looking back: Charlotteans talk about where they were when they heard about Keith Lamont Scott shooting

Do you remember the moment it happened?

On Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016, officers from CMPD’s Metro Division Crime Reduction Unit were searching for a suspect with an outstanding warrant at The Village at College Downs in Northeast Charlotte around 3:54 p.m. At the apartment complex, officers saw Keith Lamont Scott, a black man who had no connection to the search, inside a vehicle. Police said they saw him with a firearm and an officer — also a black man — fatally shot him.

By 5 p.m., unverified reports were circulating on social media and broadcast media about the victim being a disabled man who was shot four times by an officer. About 100 protesters arrive at the site of the shooting and the hashtag #KeithLamontScott started trending on social media.

So began the Charlotte protests.

That was exactly one year ago today. Do you remember where you first were when you heard about it all?

The CharlotteFive team had left the office by the time the social media turmoil was heating up. While some of our Charlotte Observer colleagues were covering the protests in person, we started asking ourselves how we should cover what was happening in the city.

This week, we asked C5 readers to tell us what they remember from the events of a year ago. Here’s what they told us.

Steffi Travis was working late at her office Uptown. She was busy preparing for a major event the next day with a team of fundraisers when a friend watching CNN in New York City called to ask if she was OK.

“I turned on the computer to research what was happening and called the team into my office,” Travis said. “We were clueless — still scanning news channels — until minutes later we heard the chants, ‘No justice, no peace!,’ outside my office window. When we turned to look there were hundreds of peaceful protesters turning the corner onto Davidson Street to pass by our building — close to the police station and government center.”

Initially, Travis felt amazed, curious and excited all at once. She and a colleague went out and joined the march for a while and returned before hearing news of shots fired.

The team was rattled by the frenzy in the streets and spent the night in the hotel that was hosting the fundraiser. Travis spent the night in her office. She prayed.

Virginia Herrick was having trouble getting home along Old Concord Road. The rest of the night was filled with sounds from the protests — she recalls the cacophony of flashbangs and helicopters. She recalls feeling anger and distrust toward the police and their story of the shooting — and still feels that now.

“I remember thinking, ‘Something isn’t right. Beyond just that a man died, someone isn’t telling the truth and this isn’t right,'” she said.

Andrew Jenkins was far from what was going on, traveling in Italy. He and his friends were in a small beach town with spotty cellphone reception and WiFi.

“I woke up to probably 40+ text messages and voice mails,” he said. “I immediately woke everyone up and told them something was going on and we needed to check on our loved ones back home.”

He felt helpless.

“Being so far away made it difficult to keep up with what was going on,” he said. “It was surreal to see Charlotte in the spotlight from abroad.”

Michael Porter was unaware of the night of events. He normally gets his news updates before work, so he found out the next morning. He lives near the University City area not far from where protesters closed off a section of I-85. Protesters reportedly looted a nearby Walmart that night, too.

“I could not believe the police or mayor did not take action to protect the innocent people in Walmart or on the interstate,” he said. “This was a huge black eye for Charlotte.”

Derrell Shipp was sitting at home. The protests unfolded across news channels. He sat in front of the TV thinking, “Please, not another brother.”

Photos: Jeff Siner/Charlotte Observer, Observer file

This story was originally published September 20, 2017 at 1:00 AM with the headline "Looking back: Charlotteans talk about where they were when they heard about Keith Lamont Scott shooting."