[6][7] The shooting incident occurred before 4:00 p.m. in the parking lot of the Village at College Downs apartment complex, near the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

At a news conference on September 22, CMPD Chief Kerr Putney described Scott as an "imminent deadly threat.

[11] The statement said that the incident began as Vinson and another plainclothes officer were sitting in an unmarked police vehicle, preparing to serve an arrest warrant in an unrelated case.

The officers observed Scott rolling what they believed to be a marijuana "blunt", but they decided that the warrant operation had higher priority than the drug activity.

When they returned, they identified themselves as police officers and "gave clear, loud and repeated verbal commands to drop the gun".

[16] The dashcam video shows that Scott exited his car upon commands to do so, and was walking backward with his hands at his sides when Vinson fired at him four times.

As Scott exited the vehicle and was stepping backward, the right leg of his pants is seen to be raised, revealing something dark above his shoe.

[20] Initially the police department declined to make the video of the shooting public, despite substantial public pressure to do so from activists, community leaders, the press, local clergy, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and William J. Barber II, president of the NAACP's North Carolina chapter.

[21] On September 24, Putney announced that the department would release dashboard and body camera recordings taken by the police of the shooting.

In an interview on CBS This Morning, Scott's wife said that she said "Don't do it" to the officers who she could see changing their stances, getting ready to fire.

"[2] On September 22, at the request of Mecklenburg District Attorney Andrew Murray, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) launched an independent inquiry into the shooting.

[29] On November 30, 2016, Mecklenburg District Attorney Andrew Murray announced that his office had decided not to charge Vinson and released a report of the investigation.

At the time of the shooting, Scott had a .380 semiautomatic handgun with a round of ammunition in the chamber and had illegally purchased the weapon online.

He added that Scott was a deadly threat because reaction-time studies showed that a person could raise a gun and wound or kill before officers had time to react.

The scene was sometimes chaotic and tense, with water bottles and stones thrown at police lines, but many protesters called for peace and implored their fellow demonstrators not to act violently.

[2][22] The Charlotte Observer reported that the "destruction late Tuesday and early Wednesday included blocking all lanes of Interstate 85, breaking into a semi-trailer and burning the contents inside, and looting a Walmart on North Tryon Street at about 3:30 a.m."[2] Over "a chaotic night of gunfire, tear gas and arrests in Charlotte's city center" on September 21–22, 44 people were arrested; nine civilians were injured; two officers sustained "relatively minor" eye injuries; and three officers were treated for heat-related ailments.

[21][33] Police Chief Kerr Putney stated that protests were initially peaceful,[33] as demonstrators lawfully gathered at Marshall Park from 7:00 to 7:30 p.m.[34] Violence broke out at around 8:00 p.m.[33] or 8:30 p.m.,[34] with people engaging in violence and vandalism, including jumping on cars, damaging property at EpiCentre, an entertainment complex uptown, and shutting down Interstate 277.

[34] Amid the rioting and throughout the night, Toussaint Romain emerged as a peace keeper, acting as a physical barrier between police and protesters at times.

[33] Violence and vandalism continued until about 3:00 a.m.[33] Over the course of the night, rioters looted shops, set fires, threw rocks, and stole money from an ATM.

[37] At the downtown Hyatt House Hotel, bricks were thrown through the window, and a valet and front desk attendant were punched in the face.

[33] A US Army veteran who recently retired from service after deployment to Afghanistan was out dining with his family and friends near the Charlotte EpiCentere and became separated from his group, he was approached by a group of 10 men who and assaulted the retired sergeant, the sergeant was punched in the face causing broken bones requiring surgery.

As the outnumbered unarmed Sergeant fled the attackers one of them could be heard on a now-deleted YouTube video yelling "You’re in the danger zone, white boy!” [38][39] Following the night's violence, Pat McCrory, governor of North Carolina, declared a state of emergency in Charlotte upon the request of Chief Putney.

Authorities stated that both the shooter and the victim were civilians; the Charlotte Clergy Coalition for Justice claimed that the individual was shot by police.

The picture of Charlotte Fire Department tactical members extracting the unconscious victim made international headlines.

The shooting victim, later identified as Justin Carr, age 26, was transported to the Carolinas Medical Center, where he died the next day.

[21][48] In a statement after the chaotic night of September 21–22, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch upheld the right of persons to peacefully protest and condemned violence.

[29] Lynch stated: "I urge those responsible for bringing violence to these demonstrations to stop, because you're drowning out the voices of commitment and change, and you're ushering in more tragedy and grief in our communities.

"[29] North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory said in a statement: "Any violence directed toward our citizens or police officers or destruction of property should not be tolerated.

"[35] North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper said in a statement: "Violence will not bring justice ... We must come together as a community to get answers and find a better path forward.