Naked Student Death: Lawyer Speaks Out

An Alabama university student who was shot dead by police while unarmed and naked did nothing to justify the killing, a lawyer for his family has said.

Attorney Jere Beasley was speaking after viewing surveillance footage of the moments leading up to 18-year-old Gil Collar's death.

He was killed in the early hours of Saturday after reportedly taking LSD at a music festival and threatening an officer at a campus police station.

Police had earlier said the surveillance footage would make clear why Mr Collar was shot.

But Mr Beasley said the first-year student never came closer than 4ft to the officer and did not try to grab his weapon.

However, the pair move out of view of the camera before the gunshot.

According to Mobile County officers, Mr Collar was suffering a drug-induced meltdown, had assaulted two people and tried to bite a woman's arm before going to police headquarters, where he physically threatened officer Trevis Austin.

Classmates and friends have been demanding that police explain why the first-year student was shot dead.

University of South Alabama spokesman Keith Ayers said shortly after the death that Mr Collar had been chasing the officer, who had tried to retreat several times to defuse the situation before he used his gun.

Student Tyler Kendrick said campus authorities had not yet provided satisfying answers about why Mr Collar was killed.

"Really, it just upsets me that there's no other way to apprehend an unarmed student rather than shooting him. I don't understand that," the second-year student said.

Fellow student Joshua Frye said he believed the officer could have used something other than a firearm to stop the man.

"What I feel is that a cop has more than a gun," he said.