Killing of Oscar Grant

Killing of Oscar Grant
Part of police brutality in the United States
A screenshot of Grant pinned down as police are handcuffing him, moments before the shooting; this was captured from one of the videos that recorded the police incident.
Location	Oakland, California, U.S.
Date	January 1, 2009; 15 years ago (2009-01-01) 2:15 a.m. PST (10:15 UTC)
Attack type	Homicide, manslaughter, police killing, shooting
Victim	Oscar Juliuss Grant III, aged 22
Perpetrator	Johannes Mehserle
Verdict	Guilty of involuntary manslaughter and gun enhancement Not guilty of second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter Gun enhancement conviction overturned by trial judge
Convictions	Involuntary manslaughter
Sentence	14 months and 30 days in prison
Charges	Second-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter, and gun enhancement
Litigation	$50 million (originally $25 million) lawsuit by John Burris against BART on behalf of Grant's mother and daughter was settled for $2.8 million; Grant's father's lawsuit was denied

Oscar Grant III was a 22-year-old Black man who was killed in the early morning hours of New Year's Day 2009 by BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle in Oakland, California. Responding to reports of a fight on a crowded Bay Area Rapid Transit train returning from San Francisco, BART Police officers detained Grant and several other passengers on the platform at the Fruitvale BART Station. BART officer Anthony Pirone kneed Grant in the head and forced Grant to lie face down on the platform. Mehserle drew his pistol and shot Grant. Grant was rushed to Highland Hospital in Oakland and pronounced dead later that day. The events were captured on bystanders’ mobile phones. Owners disseminated their footage to media outlets and to various websites where it went viral. Both protests and riots took place in the following days.

Some of the other passengers on the train, along with Grant's girlfriend Sophina, were able to break up the fight. Shortly afterward, the train conductor announced to the passengers that the police had been contacted and were on their way to the station at which they were stopped. As the passengers began to exit the train, Grant and his girlfriend saw the police walking towards them and split up. As they got closer to the train, police started to pick out people they believed to have been involved in the fight. Pirone walked up to two Black men and ripped the jacket off one. Pirone threw three people against the wall and then turned to the train, yelling for everyone involved in the fight to exit the train and come to him. Everyone remained on the train, so Pirone walked into the train to see if there was anyone who looked as if they were involved in the fight. Pirone saw Grant and removed him.

On January 30, 2010, Alameda County prosecutors charged Mehserle with second-degree murder in their indictment for the shooting. Mehserle resigned from his position and pleaded not guilty. The trial began on June 10, 2010. On July 8, 2010, Mehserle was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and not guilty of the murder charge and voluntary manslaughter.

Though initial protests on July 8, 2010, against the jury verdict were peacefully organized, after dark there were incidents of looting, arson, destruction of property, and small riots. Nearly 80 people were eventually arrested. On November 5, 2010, Mehserle was sentenced to two years, minus time served. He served his time in Los Angeles County Jail protective custody, held in a private cell for his safety. On June 13, 2011, Mehserle was released under parole after serving 11 months.^[1]

Oakland civil rights attorney John Burris filed a $25 million wrongful death claim against BART on behalf of Grant's family. BART settled with Grant's daughter and mother for a total of $2.8 million in 2011. It also settled with several of Grant's friends who had sued for damages because of police brutality. A separate suit by Grant's father did not result in a jury award, as it was decided that due to his imprisonment he was not sufficiently involved in Grant's life.

The killing, and the protests against it, were an important precursor to the Black Lives Matter movement, which began in 2013.^[2] The biographical drama film Fruitvale Station (2013), written and directed by Ryan Coogler, portrays the last 24 hours of Grant's life, his killing, and the immediate aftermath.