South Carolina man Demetrius Bryant pulls a gun and shoots an officer before being killed on video

A man who was killed by South Carolina police last November pulled a gun and shot an officer as he was being placed in handcuffs during a misdemeanor drug arrest, footage released Monday shows.

Two police officers were cleared in the November 17 shooting in Cayce, a town near the state capital Columbia, that left Demetrius Shelley Bryant, 21, dead. 

Newly released footage captured by a squad car dashboard camera shows the two officers approaching Bryant, who was found sleeping in a car parked outside a home on Lorick Street, near State Street. 

Bryant was originally going to be let off with a waing for failing to register his vehicle, but the officers decided to handcuff the young man after he revealed he had a bag of cannabis in his pocket, the video shows.

The footage shows Bryant beginning to resist as the officers hold his arms to restrain him

Bryant can be seen breaking his right arm lose from the officers' grip and reaching for his back pocket, at which point one of the officers takes a few steps back.

Bryant then produces a gun, reaching over the officer still restraining him, and shoots the other officer in the leg. 

When the shot rings out the officers scatter and Bryant makes a dash for an alleyway. One officer pulls his gun and fires two shots.

From the alley, off-camera, several more shots can be heard.

'He tried to shoot me in the face and I got him,' an officer can be heard saying as he catches his breath after the shooting.

'I think the blast of the gun went right by my head,' he added, 'because I could feel the bullet beside my head.'

Bryant died from two gunshot wounds to the upper body. 

An investigation by the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division found there was a 'lack of any sufficient evidence that would support criminal charges against our officers,' according to WLTX. 

An investigation by the Cayce Department of Public Safety, which employed the two officers, also cleared them of wrongdoing. 

Public Safety Officer Rhett Kelly, who has eight years' experience in law enforcement, has been put on limited duty as he recovers from his injuries. Sgt. Frank Ballentine, a veteran of 23 years, retued to full duty February 8, WLTX reported.