by Our Foreign Desk

PROTESTERS rallied in the US city of Cincinnati on Wednesday night as a police officer was charged with the murder of a black motorist.

The Black Lives Matter protest was held outside the Hamilton County Courthouse, where University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing was charged over the July 19 shooting of Samuel DuBose.

Prosecutor Joe Deters announced the charges at a news conference on the latest case of a white officer shooting a black citizen in suspicious circumstances.

Authorities said Mr Tensing stopped Mr DuBose because his car was missing its front number plate. A struggle ensued after Mr DuBose did not hand over his licence or get out of the car.

Mr Tensing claims that Mr DuBose tried to drive off and dragged him, forcing him to shoot. The driver died of a single wound to the head.

Mr Deters called the shooting “senseless” and “asinine,” accusing: “He purposely killed him.

“He should never have been a police officer,” the prosecutor said, adding: “I don’t think a university should be in the policing business.”

The university said it had fired Mr Tensing following the indictment. It had earlier announced a review of its police department’s policies.

On body-camera footage released on Wednesday, the officer can be heard asking for Mr DuBose’s licence several times.

Mr DuBose says he has one, later saying: “But I don’t think I have it on me.”

Mr DuBose’s family had been calling for the video to be made public, while several media firms had sued Mr Deters for it.

The video shows Mr Tensing asking Mr DuBose to unbuckle his seat belt. The officer pulls on the door handle and Mr DuBose puts his hand on the door to keep it closed.

The video becomes shaky as gunshot can be heard and Mr DuBose slumps before the car rolls away, coming to stop at a nearby corner.

Mr Tensing’s attorney Stewart Mathews had earlier said he expected charges “given the political climate.”