The transit police officer accused of shooting an unarmed rider in Oakland on New Year’s Day cannot get a fair trial in Alameda County and should be tried outside the region, a Superior Court judge ruled today.
The death of Oscar Grant, who allegedly was shot by Officer Johannes Mehserle on a BART station platform, sparked riots in downtown Oakland, death threats against Mehserle and a “staggering” volume of media coverage, Judge Morris Jacobson wrote in his 28-page ruling.
Fellow passengers recorded the shooting and its chaotic aftermath on cellphones in footage that was broadcast widely in the region and beyond.
Mehserle was charged with murder in the case; Jacobson called such a charge against an on-duty police officer acting in the scope of his duties “rare and nearly unique.”
In addition, Jacobson noted in agreeing to the defense request for a change of venue, “the nature of this crime has an implied racial aspect to it in that the defendant is Caucasian and the victim was African American.”
Attorneys for Mehserle and Grant’s family could not be reached for comment. A hearing will be held to decide where the trial — which is scheduled to begin Nov. 2 — should take place.
[Updated at 6:32 p.m.: Mehserle’s attorney, Michael Rains, said the ruling “certainly does give me some additional reason to believe that justice could occur, and I’m happy about that.”
John L. Burris, who has represented Grant’s family, could not be reached for comment.]
—Maria L. La Ganga in San Francisco
Photo: Johannes Mehserle is shackled during a Jan. 14 court appearance.
Credit: Cathleen Allison / Associated Press
UPDATE: CONVICTED
Washingtonpost.com - 'Contempt of Cop' Continued from Page 5 New D.C. police recruits were keenly aware of what they saw as deficiencies...
Blacks are arrested on 'contempt of cop' charge at higher rate - Blacks are booked by Seattle police for obstructing a public officer eight times as often as whites when population is taken into account, a Seattle P-I investigation of six years...
Henry Louis Gates' Contempt Of Cop Emptywheel - At tonight's nationally televised press conference, a reporter asked President Obama a question about the July 16 arrest of famed Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates. Obama set off...
Contempt of Cop' by William Norman Grigg - The police are to the government as the edge is to the knife, insists sociologist David Bayley, who apparently couldn't explain why the typical...
Expert Officer displayed 'contempt of cop' reaction Internal Affairs
CAMERA IS THE NEW SPEAK FOR GUN IN THE WILD, WILD WEST! - It's more about 'contempt of cop' than the violation of the wiretapping law.
Welcome to America Now step inside the jail cell - The audio exchange in this video was apparently recorded at the U.S. Canada border after a Canadian displayed contempt-of-cop towards the American law enforcement officer asking questions.
Contemptible police tactics - Cops raid the home of a licensed medical marijuana provider in Washington, handcuff the fourteen year old son and put a gun to his head, and search the nineteen year old daughter and take the contents of her mickey-mouse wallet.
How To Survive Traffic Stops in America, Submit, Instantly! - What the cops want is immediate obedience and submission. Many cops are ex-military and view the civilian motorists of America about like they viewed the hapless peasants of Iraq and Afghanistan, that is, with contempt, not as fellow citizens deserving of civility and respect. It is a possibly lethal mistake to do anything other than submit, instantly and obey! Or be ready to shoot first. But aim high.
My radio interview with Katherine Albrecht - Carlos Miller Photography is Not a Crime is interviewed by Katherine Albrecht, activist, radio host and privacy advocate, Tuesday afternoon where they discussed his blog, his arrests, the situation in the United Kingdom and the spread of contempt of cop cases that are popping up on the internet on a regular basis.
