Chester Council To Discuss Whether To Fire Officers Involved In Deadly Shooting

CHESTER, S.C. — Monday, Chester City Leaders could decide if two police officers involved in a deadly shooting will keep their jobs.

Chester Mayor Wanda Stringfellow told WCCB Charlotte she believes the officers who shot and killed Ariane McCree should be fired.  Police say McCree was a shoplifting suspect at a Walmart in Chester last November.  The Department released body cam video of the shooting.  Police say after McCree was handcuffed, he assaulted one of the officers, and then, walked towards another officer while holding a gun.

McCree was then shot.  He died in the parking lot.

Mayor Stringfellow says the officers should be fired because they did not follow policy when using their body-worn cameras.

“In the spirit of transparency, he didn’t have his body cam on.  That officer was identified, and that officer has been reprimanded for that,” says Chief Eric Williams, Chester Police Department.

Williams says the officers were justified in the shooting.  The South Carolina Attorney General declined to press charged against them, saying they acted in self-defense.  He is now asking federal prosecutors to review the case.

The Chester City Council is expected to discuss the issue Monday.