If South Carolina cop is convicted of murder, it may be unprecedented

Here are 17 recent cases where cops have been charged with murder (and the outcomes of those cases, where applicable). Here are 17 recent cases where cops have been charged with murder (and the outcomes of those cases, where applicable). Photo: Rich Legg, Getty Images Photo: Rich Legg, Getty Images Image 1 of / 24 Caption Close If South Carolina cop is convicted of murder, it may be unprecedented 1 / 24 Back to Gallery

If a white South Carolina police officer is convicted of murder for gunning down an unarmed black man as he ran away, the verdict would be unprecedented or nearly so.

In the past 20 years, at least 22 police officers in the United States have been charged with murder for their actions in line-of-duty shootings, according to a Chronicle review of news archives.

That includes Officer Michael Slager of North Charleston, S.C., whose video-recorded killing of Walter Scott has once again ignited a national debate on police accountability and on the handling of hundreds of fatal officer-involved police shootings that occur each year.

None of these 22 officers, though, have been convicted of murder. Most of them, even if they were fired or sued for millions, weren’t convicted of anything, winning full acquittals or dismissals.

The cases — summarized in the photo gallery above — involved 14 deadly incidents, some that generated national news and others that caused much less of a stir. (It’s likely some cases were missed in our search; please alert us to any other cases).

Why don't juries convict officers? Criminal justice experts and attorneys who have been involved in such cases point to a number of factors, including that jurors are reluctant to second-guess police officers’ decisions in what the officers described as high-pressure, high-stakes situations.But that’s not all.

The Chronicle found that other common factors in past acquittals included the presence of prominent defense attorneys hired through police unions; intense scrutiny of the victims and their role in sparking the confrontations; and intensive media coverage and community response, even rioting, that pressured prosecutors to file charges in cases that were difficult to win.

The low rate of both prosecutions and convictions can be viewed in two ways: Some will say it makes sense not to harshly punish people for mistakes they make while doing a dangerous and unpredictable job. Others will say that an absence of punishment is not only unjust but leaves a vacuum of accountability, making it more likely officers will use deadly force in the future.