Articles tagged with: sentencing

OAKLAND — A raucous public demonstration against the minimum sentence delivered to Johannes Mehserle turned into a nighttime march through the streets of Oakland Friday night, resulting in more than one hundred arrests and leaving two people injured, including a police officer.

Police estimate approximately 500 people gathered in front of Oakland City Hall at Frank Ogawa Plaza to decry Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Robert Perry’s decision to assign the former BART Police officer a two-year sentence with a 292 day credit for good behavior for the shooting death of Oscar Grant at the Fruitvale BART station on January 1, 2009.

OAKLAND — Numerous downtown businesses took no chances and covered storefront glass with plywood Thursday afternoon in preparation for Friday morning’s sentencing of former BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle.

A handful of shops, including the 24 Hour fitness branch on Webster and 20th Avenue covered windows with boards and secured doors for what some shop owners fear could be another violent reaction from the public to the emotionally charged case.

Former BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle gave his first public interview since he fatally shot unarmed train passenger Oscar Grant on New Year’s Day 2009 this week, speaking with journalist Rita Williams of KTVU Television.

On July 8 Mehserle was convicted by a jury of involuntary manslaughter in the 22-year-old Hayward man’s death and was immediately booked into Los Angeles County jail.

It was from there that Williams spoke with Mehserle, who appeared somber and on the verge of tears throughout the exchange.

Johannes Mehserle, the former BART Police officer who was convicted in July of involuntary manslaughter in the 2008 shooting death of Oscar Grant, sat down for his first interview with a reporter since the New Year’s Day incident.

Mehserle spoke with KTVU Television from the Los Angeles County Men’s Jail where he has been held since the verdict announcement. The interview will air on Channel 2′s 10 p.m. news Thursday evening.

As Johannes Mehserle’s sentencing date nears, family members, friends and supports of the 22-year-old Hayward man he fatally shot nearly two years ago are ramping up their efforts to mobilize community groups and push for the maximum possible sentence for the ex-BART Police officer.

(7/14) — 17:06 PDT — LOS ANGELES — Sentencing for former BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle has been pushed back three months from the original date the judge set.

Mehserle was convicted last Thursday of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting death of unarmed passenger Oscar Grant, and will now face sentencing on Friday, November 5 at 8:30 a.m. in Los Angeles Superior Court, according to a court spokesperson.