BART officer arrested on murder warrant in NY Day shooting

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Posted at 2009/01/15/1559 by farkinga
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RTFA: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/…

(01-14) 00:13 PST Oakland — 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.

Mehserle was arrested in the New Year’s Day shooting of Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old supermarket worker from Hayward who was lying facedown after being pulled off a BART train by police investigating a fight. An Alameda County judge signed an arrest warrant alleging murder, and Mehserle surrendered without incident, authorities said.

Kill somebody, interfere with the investigation, and flee to Nevada… this is totally acceptable behavior if you’re a former “cop.”

Wait. What?!

At this point, I’m not about to grandstand about this guy being guilty of murder or anything… that’s what the trial is for. However, I will say that he killed Oscar Grant, and it would be hard to convince me that there was reason for it… it would be hard to convince me that he should have even pulled his gun. So: murder? Well, that’s what the trial is for.

Maybe it’s a little bit of, “sorry son. You’ve got to go.” …in which case, the Grim Reaper walks among us with a fierce, strange intensity and acts with alarmingly dispassionate fury. Can we call this murder? For the third time: that’s what the trial is for.

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  • student
    Very interesting! I didn't know cops had special requirements. Although I think the first example of him being a bad cop is much worse than the second :)
  • farkinga
    re: not talking, good point, but being a cop comes with special requirements. According to this article (written by an LAPD officer):

    Police officers involved in shootings are generally compelled to provide statements to investigators, but Mehserle, perhaps on advice of an attorney, avoided that compulsion by resigning from his job. On Tuesday, Mehserle was arrested in Nevada after an Alameda County, Calif., judge issued a warrant charging him with murder.


    So, as a private citizen, fine: he can use the 5th amendment to avoid incriminating himself before he gets to court... However, presumably cops are aware of the additional responsibilities they are assuming when they are deputized... so he might not legally be charged with interfering with the investigation, but for the period of time that he was still an officer, he was supposed to cooperate with the investigation... and on this basis, it is yet another example of him being a bad cop...
  • student
    Are you saying he was interfering with the investigation because he wouldn't talk? That's a legal right which every person should take. Since he's being tried for murder, the only person he should be talking to is his lawyer. Also, I am under the impression he was in Nevada because of all the death threats he was receiving, not to run away. "He surrendered without incident"

    That being said, I saw the video and he's totally guilty of murder (or manslaughter if he's lucky)
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