Do you think Slager had enough time to develop a profile on Scott before Scott began to run away, marking him as guilty of *something* (God knows what)?
Given the question of the ownership of the vehicle, I’d say the safest assumption the cop could make at that moment is, “Holy crap - the reason he didn’t have insurance and registration is because he stole the car! Now he’s running!”
Again - that’s because the ONLY time Slager had was to make assumptions. Not enough time to figure out Scott’s life story from his license plate number.
Holy Geez - maybe he stole Habersham's license, and police cruiser!
OFFICER DOWN! OFFICER DOWN!!!
And car thiefs are out before the paperwork is done.