Minnesota police response in fatal shooting appears excessive: Governor

He also suggested that race could be a factor in the shooting of 32-year-old Philando Castile

Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton has said there was "every indication" that police conduct in the fatal shooting of a black motorist was "way in excess" of what the situation warranted, and that race may have played a role.

"I can't say how shocked I am and how deeply, deeply offended that this would occur in Minnesota to somebody who got pulled over for a tail light being out of order," Dayton told reporters yesterday, calling the situation "absolutely appalling" on all levels.

The Democratic governor also suggested race could be a factor in the shooting of 32-year-old Philando Castile, as his girlfriend and her four-year-old daughter looked on.

"Would this have happened if those passengers, the driver and the passengers, were white? I don't think it would have," he said.

"So I'm forced to confront, and I think all of us in Minnesota are forced to confront, that this kind of racism exists."

Castile's girlfriend Diamond Reynolds livestreamed the immediate aftermath of the shooting, as Castile lay bleeding in the driver's seat and an officer pointed his gun through the window.

Pulled over for a broken tail light, Castile informed the officer he was carrying a licensed gun, Reynolds said, and was shot as he reached for his license and registration.

"Nobody should be shot and killed in Minnesota for a traffic tail light being out of function," said Dayton, who was visibly emotional.