A white former transit officer was convicted of involuntary manslaughter on Thursday in the videotaped shooting death of an unarmed black man on an Oakland train platform, a verdict that touched off violent protests in Oakland that damaged businesses and 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.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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 on Thursday when they heard the verdict, decrying what they called a lack of justice.
At least a dozen business were damaged after 9pm, including a Foot Locker store that was looted and a jewelry store that was ransacked. Windows were also smashed at several other businesses.
Firefighters put out fires in several trash bins and at least one dumpster.
One person suffered a leg injury when some protesters started throwing rocks and bottles, officials said.
Oakland Police Chief Anthony Batts said that at least 50 people had been arrested and expected the number to double.
“We deserve better than this,” he said. “This city is not the Wild Wild West. We will allow people to protest and we will allow them to do it peacefully.”
Batts says officers from 15 different agencies responded to help Oakland police.
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.
The verdict followed a three-week trial in which prosecutors played videos by bystanders, and witnesses recounted hearing the 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 might 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 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.
Legal experts said the verdict shows the jury sympathized with Mehserle’s version of events.
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