Protests over BART shooting turn violent { Riots in Oakland }

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 1/7/9 | Demian Bulwa, Charles Burress, Matthai Kuruvila

[SmithL]

OAKLAND -- A protest over the fatal shooting by a BART police officer of an unarmed man mushroomed into a violent confrontation Wednesday evening, with a faction of protesters smashing a police car and blocking streets in downtown Oakland.

The protest started peacefully shortly after 3 p.m. at the Fruitvale Station in Oakland, where BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle shot 22-year-old Oscar Grant of Hayward to death early New Year's Day. BART shut down the station well into the evening commute, although the demonstration there was peaceful.]

However, shortly after nightfall, a group of roughly 200 protesters split off and head toward downtown Oakland, prompting the transit agency to close the Lake Merritt station.

Oakland Police Officer Michael Cardoza parked his car across the intersection of Eighth and Madison streets, to prevent traffic from flowing toward Broadway and into the protest. But he told The Chronicle that a group of 30 to 40 protesters quickly surrounded his car and started smashing it with bottles and rocks.

Cardoza jumped out of the car and said some protesters tried to set the car on fire, while others jumped on top of the hood - incidents repeatedly shown on television. Cardoza said the protesters "were trying to entice us into doing something."

A group of protesters also set a trash bin aflame, moving it adjacent to the police car.

[eastforker]

You said..........I haven’t and won’t watch the videos)................Maybe you should, then you might not be making such arogant remarks.

[DGHoodini]

...La Vida DemoGenerate...

[voteNRA]

Thanks for the link, I think I may be the very last person to see that video.

That being said, it looks to me like the officer was having trouble cuffing the suspect and went for his taser thingy and drew his sidearm instead.

I am certainly not offering an excuse for the officer, just my take.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

It was probably an accidental shooting — even though the officer was WAY out of line pulling his firearm on a man prone on the floor being subdued by other officers. My guess is the officer had a brain fart, leveled his firearm with finger on trigger, and accidentally fired. Quite the idiot, and too bad for the victim. Some body’s going to pay big buck$.

[Eva]

You know, I don’t even care enough to look at the video.

Maybe we should offer restorative justice to the young police officer. We have no justice system anymore, so why not try some reverse restorative justice?

[Oztrich Boy]

That's ex-police officer

[Othniel]

There was a case in Madera, Calif., where that happened. Officer went for her tazer, drew her pistol instead, and badaboom.

[Global2010]

The tv news announced tonight that the Officer has officially resigned.

[Global2010]

Maybe times are changing when it comes to rioting.

Multi Cultural riots.

[eastforker]

I made a comment the other day that the present reminds me more and more of the late 60’s, early 70’s. The riots back then had a common theme also. I myself am sick and tired of self righteous law enforcement agencies.

[papertyger]

...I haven’t and won’t watch the videos...

This statement is only thing I've seen on two threads about this incident that approaches the stupidity of the murderer.

Are you really so conceited that you will argue with those who have actually seen the evidence?

Of what possible value can your input be?

[papertyger]

He deserves the needle.

[MaxMax]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IZlcbJwfP4

Seems it's common. Plenty of accidental shootings by Officers.

[voteNRA]

He deserves the needle.

Skipping a couple steps in the process there, are ya?

[papertyger]

Skipping a couple steps in the process there, are ya?

I don't need a committee to tell me what I saw...

[voteNRA]

I don't need a committee to tell me what I saw...

I don't either but as I said earlier, this whole thing could have been a mistake of pulling his Glock instead of his tazer.

In that case life in a cage would do for me, no reason to execute for a manslaughter (IMHO).

[KingofZion]

agreed. let’s call a spade a spade (no slur intended).

there are several videos and they all look worse than rodney king (and rodney didn’t die).

can the riots really be a shock? this is de riguer for this community.

[KneelBeforeZod]

ATTICA!!! ATTICA!!

[KneelBeforeZod]

"You see, their morals, their code, it's a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. I'll show you. When the chips are down, these... these civilized people, they'll eat each other."

[csvset]

The core group of the mob appeared to be about 40 people, several of whom were with Revolution Books, a Berkeley bookstore. A man distributed the "Revolution" newspaper - whose tagline is "voice of the Revolutionary Communist Party, U.S.A." - as he shouted "This whole damn system is guilty!"

The roving mob expressed fury at police and frustration over society's racial injustice. Yet the demonstrators were often indiscriminate, frequently targeting the businesses and prized possessions of people of color.

The reporter sounds disappointed. No people, get the white M.. F.. 'ers!

These quotes are from a later version of the same story.

Here