BART officer arrested for Oscar Grant's murder
The BART police officer who fatally shot an unarmed man on an Oakland train platform and then refused to explain his actions to investigators was arrested Tuesday in Nevada on suspicion of murder, authorities said.Johannes Mehserle, 27, of Lafayette was taken into custody in Douglas County, Nev., said Deputy Steve Velez of the Douglas County sheriff's office. The arrest was also confirmed by David Chai, chief of staff to Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums.
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Related: Justice for Oscar Grant-Please spread widely!
Justice for Oscar Grant: Update on Fruitvale BART Protest
Via zp27 on the community blog.
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The Alameda County DA just charged him with murder.
Good. It was.
I read an article about it in the LA Times, and he claimed that he thought he had grabbed his taser, but that story doesn't hold water. For one thing, a taser and a Glock .09mm (standard for law enforcement) look nothing alike, weigh nothing alike, and feel nothing alike. Furthermore, the taser holster, though on the same side, is in a different position than the Glock. I'm wondering what his defense is going to be, because I'm pretty sure a sensible judge is going to hear that story and say "Bull!".
Innocent until proven guilty.
Innocent unless there's video of you stepping back and shooting a man in the back, execution style.
Precisely.
Why would a cop deliberately "execute" a man in front of a crowd of people? It's a question worth considering. What we do know is that the police officer shot an unarmed man offering no resistance at point blank range in the back. But as far as I'm concerned, innocent until proven guilty - at least as far as deliberate murder is concerned. His testimony should at least be heard before he's thrown to the wolves.
I know, my reply was a bit sarcastic. The thing is, cops do these kind of things and they think it's ok because they're cops ALL the time. Why would officers beat Rodney King in front of a crowd of people? Why would police shot protesters at Kent State in front of a shitload of people?
I definitely think he should get his due process, and he will. But until someone presents me with compelling evidence that this was not deliberate murder, I will believe it was.
And, for the record, I didn't say he "executed" him, I said he shot him "execution style" which is what it certainly looked like to me.
Very well put. And further, "innocent until proven guilty" is a legal position, not an ethical or moral one. This man has a right to due process. That doesn't mean that I can't believe (and indeed say or write) that I believe his actions constitute murder - I am not on the jury.
Yeah that's a fair point! You're right, there are lots of examples of cops abusing the law in a blatant fashion...
I don't really understand. I live in a place where Tasers aren't really used, not even by police, so I don't know how they work, but from what I understand it gives an electrical shock. That would mean the Taser would have to be in direct contact with the intended victim: you cannot transfer electricity throught the air, as far as I know (or at least not in any meaningfull amount).
Now, I didn't see the video, but if he 'stepped back', I don't see how he could have thought he was using a Taser: he wasn't *using* it as a Taser.
But, please, correct me if I'm wrong.
Nevermind, I looked it up on wiki.
Yeah. Sorry for being unclear. His story was that he *thought* he had grabbed his taser when he shot the man. Even if he's telling the truth, I sure as hell don't want a cop on the streets who can't tell the difference between a taser and a Glock.
And, unfortunately for Oscar Grant's family, by claiming that he thought he grabbed his taser, he's created "reasonable doubt" a legal standard that means he will probably NOT be charged with 1st degree murder. Now, like a posetr mentioned above, I'm being very hasty in judging this man, but you now what? I don't care. What I saw was horrific, he fled the jurisdiction, the BART police and police officers in general in this country have a history of brutality, and I just don't buy his bullshit excuse. Really? A taser? I think you have a great point Ariel; do we want police officers that don't know the difference between a taser and a glock?
The police need to be held accountable for a lot of things, and a large part of my (and I suspectm many other peoples') outrage comes from the fact that they haven't been held accountable, that they get away with murder and brutality and bullshit and no one calls them on it because , ooh, their job is sooo dangerous, boo-hoo-and they're helping to create a huge divide between the people who need law enforcement the most and law enforcement, and they contribute to the fucked up situations in our cities, where your race and your class might mean you have an 80% chance of getting gunned down before you reach the quarter century mark.
Sorry, my crazy mad is showing.