ORANGEBURG, S.C. (AP) — A prosecutor says the 2011 fatal shooting of an unarmed black man by a white police chief in rural South Carolina was a senseless act of violence.
Solicitor David Pascoe said in opening arguments Wednesday that Bernard Bailey was murdered over a broken taillight by then-Eutawville Police Chief Richard Combs.
But Combs’ lawyer John O’Leary says the chief had a legitimate warrant against Bailey, and the victim turned his pickup truck into a weapon when he tried to back away as Combs tried to arrest him.
Authorities say Combs was trying to arrest Bailey on an obstruction of justice charge a few days after the chief issued a broken taillight ticket to Bailey’s daughter.
The former chief faces from 30 years to life in prison if convicted of murder.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.