Riots Feared as verdict nears in Oakland Case

[InRareForm]

http://www.insidebayarea.com/top-stories/ci_15428831

[bigzak25]

I really don't wish to see the video, but if this officers record is otherwise impeccable, I'd lean toward involuntary manslaughter.

May Justice be served and may that young man rest in peace.

[DMX7]

Whats the penalty range for involuntary manslaughter? I'd probably go with that too.

[InRareForm]

Mistakes happen in heat of moment, but mistaking a tazer for a real gun, i dunno about that, might of happened, but a life was lost, you a pay a penalty and shouldn't walk freely.

[boutons_deux]

"officers record is otherwise impeccable"

All that means he hasn't been caught or complained against, yet, not that he's innocent of brutality.

a gun and a taser weigh and feel the same?

why the need to tase anybody who's already prone with cop on top of him?

Sounds like some pretty solid defensive lawyering and word fogging, and the judges always give the benefit of the doubt to the police.

[bigzak25]

"officers record is otherwise impeccable"

All that means he hasn't been caught or complained against, yet, not that he's innocent of brutality.

a gun and a taser weigh and feel the same?

why the need to tase anybody who's already prone with cop on top of him?

Sounds like some pretty solid defensive lawyering and word fogging, and the judges always give the benefit of the doubt to the police.


I think you have valid points, and that's just what I expect the jury to be debating. Seems a no brainer it's manslaughter. Just whether it was voluntary or involuntary. Hopefully the jury takes a good look at the video and the facts and makes the right decision.

[baseline bum]

The cocksucker deserves the firing squad.

[MaNuMaNiAc]

Here's the video of the incident

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For those of you afraid to watch it, don't be. Its not gory or anything. Its shocking obviously, but you can't really see much other than the officer pull the gun out and then you hear the shot.

I have to say it really doesn't make sense for the cop to have just killed the dude simply because he was racist or something. I mean, with so many witnesses? It does seem like he mistook his gun for a tazer. Dude is stupid, but I wouldn't call him a murderer.

[redzero]

Mehserle testified that he wanted to use his Taser because he thought Grant was resisting arrest and might be reaching for a gun, but Mehserle said he pulled his gun by mistake. Friday morning was the last chance for the defense to make that story resonate with jurors.

Don't you hate when that happens?

[bigzak25]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/07/08/jury-reaches-verdict-case-transit-worker-charged-killing-calif-train-station/

Former transit officer convicted of involuntary manslaughter in train station killing

http://www.foxnews.com/static/managed/img/U.S./070810_looters2_397x224.jpg



A white former transit officer was convicted of involuntary manslaughter Thursday in the videotaped shooting death of an unarmed black man on an Oakland train platform, a verdict that touched off protests in Oakland that led to at least 50 arrests.

Prosecutors had wanted Johannes Mehserle convicted of murdering 22-year-old Oscar Grant, who was shot once in the back as he lay face-down.

The jury's conviction on the lesser charge raised concerns of a repeat of the days of rioting that followed the shooting on New Year's Day in 2009. The incident is among the most racially polarizing cases in California since four Los Angeles officers were acquitted in 1992 in the beating of Rodney King.

Near Oakland City Hall, a crowd moaned and cursed Thursday when they heard the verdict, decrying what they called a lack of justice.

Several business were damaged after 9 p.m., including a Foot Locker store that was looted and a jewelry store that was ransacked. Windows were also smashed at several other businesses.

Oakland Police Chief Anthony Batts said that at least 50 people had been arrested and expected the number to double. He said officers are "focused on arrests at this point in time."

Batts says officers from 15 different agencies responded to help Oakland police.

Firefighters were also called out to put out fires in several trash bins and at least one dumpster.

Batts said earlier one person suffered a leg injury when some protesters started throwing rocks and bottles.

Before the incidents, Batts had described a mostly peaceful protest, although a small incendiary device had been set off near his department's downtown station.

The chief's briefing came as lines of police in riot gear worked to keep the crowd confined to a two-block area in the city's downtown area.

"There is no need for this. This makes us look like animals. We came here for peace," said Jonathan Trotter, 34, who watched the Foot Locker looters with disappointment. "This is a justification for the verdict."

Some streets in Oakland had been deserted after workers went home early in anticipation of possible riots.

The anger is directed at the involuntary manslaughter conviction — the lowest offense Mehserle faced. The charge carries a sentence of two to four years, although the judge could add 10 more years because a gun was used in the killing.


"My son was murdered! He was murdered! He was murdered," said Grant's mother, Wanda Johnson, who earlier stared at jurors when the verdict was read.

Mehserle was taken away in handcuffs. He turned to his family and mouthed, "I love you, guys," as his parents wept.

One female juror wiped tears with a tissue when the panel was polled on its decision.

The verdict followed a three-week trial in which prosecutors played videos by bystanders, and witnesses recounted hearing the frightening gunshot that killed Grant.

At least five bystanders videotaped the incident

Mehserle, 28, testified that he struggled with Grant and saw him digging in his pocket as officers responded to reports of a fight at a train station. Fearing Grant may have a weapon, Mehserle said he decided to shock Grant with his Taser but pulled his .40-caliber handgun instead.

Grant has become a martyr of sorts in a city where more than a third of residents are black. His omnipresent image on buildings and storefront windows arguably rivals that of slain hometown rapper Tupac Shakur.

The trial was moved from Alameda County to Los Angeles because of racial tension and extensive media coverage in Oakland.

Alameda County District Attorney Nance E. O'Malley said in a statement that while the jury did not agree with the prosecution's belief that it was murder, the panel also rejected the defense contention that Mehserle had no criminal liability.

"The case is a tragedy in every respect. Oscar Grant should never have been killed at the hands of a sworn officer," O'Malley said.

The case was a rare instance in which a police officer stood trial for an on-duty killing and that was captured on video from so many different angles.

The jury had a choice between murder and lesser charges of voluntary and involuntary manslaughter. The jury found that Mehserle didn't mean to kill Grant, but that his behavior was still so negligent that it was criminal.

"It's not real, it's not real. Where's the justice? He was killed in cold blood," 23-year-old Amber Royal of Oakland said as a crowd near City Hall moaned and cursed when they heard the verdict. A dozen people gathered in a semicircle to pray.

Grant family attorney John Burris said they were "extremely disappointed" with the verdict.

"This verdict is not a true representation of what happened to Oscar Grant. This was not an involuntary manslaughter case," Burris said.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued a statement urging Californians to remain calm and not resort to violence. Schwarzenegger said he had informed Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums the state was well prepared to assist in maintaining order.

"As we have come to notice, and we as a family has been slapped in the face by a system that has denied us a right to true justice," said Cephus Johnson, Grant's uncle. "We truly do not blame the jury, but we blame the system."

Legal experts said the verdict shows the jury sympathized with Mehserle's version of events.

Prosecutors had a huge hurdle to overcome in convincing a jury that an officer with a spotless record meant to kill, even with video of the killing, said University of California, Berkeley, law school professor Erin Murphy.

"I think it's a lesson that video can only get us so far," Murphy said.

Defense attorney Michael Rains contended the shooting was a tragic accident. Mehserle had no motive to shoot Grant, even though he was resisting arrest, the lawyer argued.

Rains also said Mehserle told a colleague before the shooting: "Tony, Tony, Tony, I can't get his hands. I'm going to Tase him."

Rains did not respond to calls seeking comment.

Fallout from the shooting was swift in Oakland after the videos were shown on television and the Internet. The shooting and the nearly two weeks it took to arrest Mehserle sent the city into a tailspin of violence as downtown businesses were damaged, cars were set ablaze and clashes erupted between protesters and police.

Grant had recently been released from jail after being sentenced to 16 months for a gun possession charge filed after he ran from police and was subdued by an officer with a stun gun.

The jury included eight women and four men. None listed their race as black. Seven said they were white, three were Latino, and one was Asian-Pacific. One declined to state their race.


------------------


I understand the mother's outrage. Her son was killed, seemingly in cold blood, and for no good reason. However, she needs to own up to her part, and take responsibility for raising a child that was out in the streets and had already served a 16 month sentence for gun possession. That's on her...and the not mentioned father of this young man, wherever he may be.

The outrage at the 'system' is outrage for the sake of outrage. There is not nearly the attention or outrage when an African American is killed by another African American, and that is the biggest shame in all of it, because it is a much more common occurrence.

Kids are getting killed daily, and people want to martyr one child in the name of racism and perpetuating the hate, while a few others want to use it as an excuse to get a new pair of shoes. How ridiculous.

We should want justice for all our children. In an ideal world, parents would be facing judgment for their lack of parenting.

I expect a tough but fair ruling on the sentencing. I expect 4 years and I'm sure the man will serve a bit less than that after all is said and done.

May that kid rest in peace, and may his death not be in vain.

[CosmicCowboy]

OK, Now Eric Holder wants to get involved. Has any justice department EVER been so blatantly racist?

[Fpoonsie]

"Hmmm...how can we demonstrate that we're furious w/ their 'racist' verdict? I know! Let's steal some shoes 'n' bling."

Disgusting. I really hate people sometimes.

[Winehole23]

The cocksucker deserves the firing squad.Sentenced to two years w/ credit for time served (146 days) for involuntary manslaughter.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/11/bart-officer-sentenced.html

[clambake]

OK, Now Eric Holder wants to get involved. Has any justice department EVER been so blatantly racist?

you can take that back anytime now, cc.

[ChuckD]

OK, Now Eric Holder wants to get involved. Has any justice department EVER been so blatantly racist?

Hmmmm. Probably just EVERY ONE up until about 1965. Other than that, probably not.