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A White man claiming to be a neighborhood watch member in Raleigh, North Carolina, has been charged for the murder of a Black man.

Chad Copley was inside his garage on Sunday when he fired a shotgun and hit 20-year-old Kouren-Rodney Bernard Thomas.

Before the fatal shooting, Copley called 911 several times to complain about what he described as “hoodlums” near his home with weapons.

NewsOne Now panelist A’Shanti Gholar said the shooting of Thomas reminded her of the Trayvon Martin shooting: “I was really bothered by the fact that he (Chad Copley) knew the law.”

Gholar then explained how the suspected shooter fired an alleged “warning shot” from inside of his house, “So now he gets to say he was in his home and protecting himself.”

Guest host Joia Jefferson Nuri asked the panel, “When does a warning shot go towards someone?”

Angela Rye, Principal of Impact Strategies, responded, “When you are a White neighborhood watchman and a Black man, because he’s a Black man – whether he’s cursing or not – is deemed inherently violent and criminal.

“That is a narrative that just has to shift and I don’t know why it can’t shift quickly after decades of experiencing that.”

Rye also believes the Martin shooting has “emboldened other neighborhood watchmen or women to conduct similar activities.”

Watch guest host Joia Jefferson Nuri and the NewsOne Now panel discuss the murder of Kouren-Rodney Bernard Thomas in the video clip above.

PHOTO CREDIT: Getty

Watch NewsOne Now with Roland Martin, in its new time slot on TV One.

SEE ALSO: 

‘We Got A Bunch Of Hoodlums Out Here:’ NC Homeowner Charged With Killing Unarmed Black Man

$50,000 Payout To Racist LAPD Cop Shines Spotlight On Systemic Problem