VIDEO: Released footage shows MPD Officer Hamilton shoot at car

MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) - Newly released dash camera and body camera video from the Hennepin County Attorney's Office shows the moment Minneapolis Police Officer Efrem Hamilton shot at a car in downtown Minneapolis in November 2016.

Last week, a jury found Officer Hamilton not guilty and was cleared of three criminal counts.

That night, Hamilton was in uniform, but working off-duty at a downtown bar when he heard reports of a fight with shots fired several blocks away outside a nightclub. He drove to the scene in his squad car, where a car containing six people, not involved in the incident, backed into his squad car. No one was injured in the shooting.

Dash cam video shows Hamilton drive to the scene. As he pulls up to the police scene, a car backs into his squad. As soon as he gets out of the car, Officer Hamilton fires a shot. Much of the footage was shown during the trial.

During the trial, the driver of the vehicle testified, saying police had ordered her to back her car away from the scene of a fight and gunfire. 

Hamilton took the stand in his own defense saying he believed the car that backed into him was the suspect's car. He said he shot at the car because he feared for his life.