Black Motorist 'Mistakenly' Shot by White Cop Claiming She Meant to Grab Taser

A Black motorist was "mistakenly" shot by a white cop after "accidentally" grabbing her gun and not her taser.

After clamoring from the media for almost a year, the Lawrence Police Department released the dashcam video of an officer shooting a motorist who attacked another officer during a traffic stop.

The police department released the video after an open-records request from a newspaper.

The video was taken from the patrol vehicle of the officer who first pulled over Lawrence resident Akira R. Lewis, 35, who was not wearing a seatbelt at the time. The footage then sees the situation escalating from there.

THE CONFRONTATION BETWEEN LEWIS AND THE COPS

Lewis protested being stopped, refusing to give his name or driver's license. He curses at Officer Ian McCann, who was trying to speak to him calmly.

While McCann confirms that he could get Lewis out of there in five minutes if he decided to provide him with his license, he refused to do so. This prompted the officer to call for backup to arrest him.

When back up arrived, Officer Brindley Blood tried to help Officer McCann to pull Lewis out of his SUV.

THE PHYSICAL ALTERCATION BETWEEN LEWIS AND THE COPS

After a quick struggle, Lewis jumps out of the vehicle and lunges at McCann and flung him to the pavement right in front of a car. He landed more punches on McCann.

Blood then runs from the other side of the SUV, drawing her gun with her right hand and stands over the two men on the ground, yelling "Taser, Taser, Taser" before firing the gun.

Lewis is then heard crying out in pain, with Blood heard saying "Oh [expletive] I shot him."

The two officers handcuffed Lewis while tending to his wounds.

With the court hearings resuming, Lewis admitted that while he was not wearing his seatbelt, he believes he was unfairly pulled over because he is black. He adds that McCann let two other white motorists without seat belts go on without stopping them.

CHARGES AGAINST OFFICER BLOOD

Officer Blood, 36, is charged with aggravated battery, a felony for recklessly injuring Lewis with a deadly weapon. Her attorneys argue that she made a mistake, but she was not being reckless and that charge should be dropped.