--- title: Presidential Hopefuls Condemn South Carolina Shooting description: Likely presidential candidates from both parties condemned the shooting of an unarmed black man in South Carolina by a police officer. canonical: https://time.com/3814890/presidential-candidates-walter-scott/ author: Zeke Miller article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-09T14:04:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:04:37.826Z article:section: Politics og:title: Presidential Hopefuls Condemn South Carolina Shooting og:description: Candidates from both parties said they were shocked by the video. og:url: https://time.com/3814890/presidential-candidates-walter-scott/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5e518754401aa091/6987ea442dce01504e9e138f/rand-paul3.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) speaks during a rally at Town Hall in Milford, New Hampshire on April 8, 2015. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Presidential Hopefuls Condemn South Carolina Shooting twitter:description: Candidates from both parties said they were shocked by the video. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5e518754401aa091/6987ea442dce01504e9e138f/rand-paul3.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Presidential Hopefuls Condemn South Carolina Shooting by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke Miller Apr 9, 2015 2:04 PM UTC  U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) speaks during a rally at Town Hall in Milford, New Hampshire on April 8, 2015. U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) speaks during a rally at Town Hall in Milford, New Hampshire on April 8, 2015.Darren McCollester—Getty Images by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke Miller Apr 9, 2015 2:04 PM UTC The 2016 presidential field uniformly condemned the shooting of Walter Scott by a police officer in South Carolina last weekend. In statements and interviews, several GOP presidential hopefuls weighed in on the shooting which has riveted the nation, following the emergence of a video that apparently shows officer Michael T. Slager firing multiple times at Scott, who was unarmed, before appearing to drop a stun gun near his lifeless body. In an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity Wednesday, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker called the incident “just horrific.” “For men and women who follow the law and use the training effectively, I’m always going to stand to defend them,” he said. “But that video just shook my very human being to think that someone would do that and I think anyone who’s been in law enforcement knows that’s not the way people are trained to act. And I send out my sympathy to the family involved there.” His comments followed Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who on CNN said “it’s just a terrible tragedy and I hope justice does occur.” “I think when you look at police across our country, 98 percent, 99 percent of them are doing their job on a day-to-day basis and aren’t doing things like this,” Paul continued. Republicans have traditionally sided with law enforcement in other instances of police-on-civilian violence, making their condemnations all the more notable. In a tweet Wednesday evening, former Secretary of State and likely Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton condemned the shooting. “Praying for [#WalterScott](https://twitter.com/search?q=%23WalterScott)‘s family,” she wrote. “Heartbreaking & too familiar. We can do better – rebuild trust, reform justice system, respect all lives.” Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, a likely Democratic challenger to Clinton, tweeted” “This video is appalling but it shows why accountability & transparency are so important. It shouldn’t take a video to ensure justice.” In a statement, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal praised authorities for swiftly bringing charges against the officer. “This is a horrific situation, and I think it is important that authorities moved quickly to bring charges. My heart goes out to the family of the victim.” A spokesman for former Texas Gov. Rick Perry echoed those comments, saying, “This is a terrible tragedy and the governor’s prayers are with Mr. Scott’s family.” South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham called the video “very difficult to watch and deeply troubling on many fronts,” in a statement. He added, “I also know the actions of the officer in this situation do not accurately reflect on the many valuable contributions made by thousands of law enforcement officers in South Carolina and across our nation.” TIME reached out to the other major presidential candidates for comment, but they did not offer their reactions. ### See the 2016 Candidates Looking Very Presidential  Sen. Ted Cruz is surrounded by stars and stripes at the 2014 Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C. on September 26, 2014. Mark Peterson—Redux  Hillary Clinton Hillary Clinton gazes pensively into the distance at Iowa Senator Tom Harken'a annual Steak Fry in Indianola, Iowa on September 14, 2014. Brooks Kraft—Corbis for TIME  Jeb Bush Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush flashes a power watch before giving his keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform in Washington on Nov. 20, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Bernie Sanders waves to supporters after officially announcing his candidacy for the U.S. presidency during an event at Waterfront Park in Burlington, Vermont, on May 26, 2015. Win McNamee—Getty Images  Chris Christie New Jersey Governor Chris Christie strikes a presidential power stance at the ceremony for the opening of the 206 bypass in Hillsborough, New Jersey on October 28, 2013. Mark Peterson—Redux  Former Hewlett-Packard Co Chief Executive Officer Carly Fiorina listens to her introduction from the side of the stage at the Freedom Summit in Des Moines, Iowa on Jan. 24, 2015. Jim Young—Reuters  Rand Paul Sen. Rand Paul works a crowd during a campaign stop on October 24, 2014 in McDonough, Georgia. Jessica McGowan—Getty Images  Rick Perry Texas Gov. Rick Perry looks powerfully patriotic during the National Anthem before an NCAA college football game on Nov. 27, 2014, in College Station, Texas. David J. Phillip—AP  Bobby Jindal Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal looks to the future during The Family Leadership Summit on Aug. 9, 2014, in Ames, Iowa. Charlie Neibergall—AP  Martin O'Malley Maryland Governor Martin OíMalley ponders decorating ideas in front of his possible future home on CBS's Face the Nation on Feb. 23, 2014. Chris Usher—AP  Marco Rubio Sen. Marco Rubio looks determined the morning after the State of the Union address in Washington, D.C. on January 29, 2014. Melissa Golden—Redux  Ben CarsonBen Carson at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference on March 8, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Jim Webb Retiring Sen. Jim Webb imitates the presidential wave during a rally in Virginia Beach, Va. on Sept. 27, 2012. Steve Helber—AP  John Kasich Ohio Gov. John Kasich practices his presidential victory pose at the Ohio Republican Party celebration on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014, in Columbus, Ohio. Tony Dejak—AP  Rick Santorum Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum looks resolute at CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Conference on March 7, 2014. Brooks Kraft—Corbis  Scott Walker Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker practices the presidential point on March 3, 2014 in Milwaukee. Jeffrey Phelps—AP  Mike Huckabee Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee fine-tunes his presidential oratory at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md. on March 7, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Lincoln Chafee, Former Rhode Island Governor, poses for a selfie with a student after announcing he will seek the Democratic nomination for president in Arlington, Va. on June 3, 2015. Jonathan Ernst—Reuters  Lindsey Graham Lindsey Graham announced his plans to join the 2016 presidential race. Alex Wong—Getty Images  George Pataki Former New York governor George Pataki listens to a question at the First in the Nation Republican Leadership Conference in Nashua, New Hampshire, in this April 17, 2015 file photo. 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