Judge: Video counters officers’ account of fatal shooting

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge says video of a racially charged fatal San Francisco police shooting “casts doubt” on officers’ accounts that the 26-year-old black man was moving quickly toward them when they shot.

Five San Francisco Police officers shot Mario Woods a combined 21 times in December 2015 after he refused to drop a kitchen knife. Woods was suspected of stabbing a man and his death touched of weeks of protests over the police department’s treatment of minorities.

Woods’ family sued the police department.

U.S. District Judge William Orrick cited the videos Tuesday when he refused to toss out the family’ wrongful death lawsuit against the officers. KQED Radio was first to report the ruling.

Lawyers for the city sought to dismiss the lawsuit by unsuccessfully arguing the officers acted reasonably.