BATON ROUGE, Liousiana-- The black man shot dead by police in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was described by those who knew him as a fun-loving guy who scraped together a living selling music recorded on compact discs.
The father of five had been arrested several times in his 37 years of life, and a felony conviction landed him on a list of sex offenders. Alton Sterling, 37, was shot at close range by two white police officers at about 12:30 a.m. CDT on Tuesday. The shooting, captured on cell phone videos, aggravated the unrest that has coursed through the United States for two years over the use of excessive force by police, especially against black men.
Relatives and acquaintances of Sterling from his Baton Rouge neighbourhood described him as a local fixture who had been peddling CDs, DVDs and games for years in front of the Triple S Food Mart, where the shooting took place. The money he made supported him and his children.
"He was a very nice guy, always smiling and laughing and joking," said store owner Abdullah Muflahi, who said he considered Sterling a friend.
Sharida Sterling, a cousin who grew up with Sterling, said he was often harassed by police outside the store, attention that she and others said was unwarranted. "I'd never seen him get out of hand with anyone," said Elvina Scott, who lives nearby and said she bought a CD from Sterling a few minutes before he was shot.
Baton Rouge police officials said officers had responded to a call that a black man was making threats with a gun. They said Sterling was armed when they arrived. Shopkeeper Muflahi said Sterling had recently gotten a gun to protect himself from possible robberies, but he did not see a weapon in his friend's hand during the encounter with police.
