For Charleston, S.C., attorney David Aylor, it was over as soon as he saw the disturbing video that showed North Charleston, S.C., Police Officer Michael Slager opening fire on 50-year-old Walter Scott, shooting a reported eight times as Scott was running away.
In an exclusive interview with the Daily Beast, Aylor didn’t go into details about his three-day representation of the client, but he did acknowledge that shortly after the video was made public, he withdrew his legal counsel.
“I can’t specifically state what is the reason why or what isn’t the reason why I’m no longer his lawyer. All I can say is that the same day of the discovery of the video that was disclosed publicly, I withdrew as counsel immediately,” Aylor told the site.
“Whatever factors people want to take from that and conclusions they want to make, they have the right to do that. But I can’t confirm from an attorney-client standpoint what the reason is.”
Aylor would not tell the Daily Beast where he first viewed the video, but he said that he was made aware by the media and that a reporter had sent him the video in an email.
The attorney said he was not aware of the video at the time of his brief representation and still does not know who is behind the filming of the crucial piece of evidence, where it came from and who disclosed it to the public first.
“I feel that it’s a tragic situation that occurred. I feel for all of those who are affected by the incident and of course the loss of life. At no point, not specific to this case, just generally speaking, is anybody above the law,” Aylor added. “And I think that’s why we have process and court systems and everybody deserves their day in court, but I won’t be participating in anything related to this case moving forward in that regard.”
Read more at the Daily Beast.