Judge rules against first-degree Mehserle verdict {BART Shooting}

Oakland Tribune ^ | 6/30/10 | Paul T. Rosynsky

[SmithL]

LOS ANGELES - Johannes Mehserle will not be convicted of first-degree murder, a judge declared today, but jurors deciding the 28-year-old's fate will be allowed to consider every other crime, including second-degree murder, associated with a homicide.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Perry said evidence in the case proves that the former BART police officer did not plan to kill Oscar Grant III when he shot the 22-year-old Hayward man in the back on Oakland's Fruitvale BART station platform.

Perry said, however, that there is enough evidence to allow the jury to consider whether the killing was a second-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter or involuntary manslaughter. The jury also can decide that Mehserle did not commit a crime at all and acquit him.

In making his decision, Perry said that even with a second-degree murder conviction, Mehserle would face a severe penalty of 40 years to life in prison because the Alameda County District Attorney's Office also charged the former officer with a gun enhancement.

That enhancement - purposely firing a gun during the commission of a murder - adds 25 years to the sentence of 15 years to life that accompanies a second-degree murder conviction. A first-degree murder conviction carries a sentence of 50 years to life.

Perry's ruling rejected a defense gamble to have the jury decide only between second-degree murder and acquittal. The gamble, legal experts have said, was made by the defense in hopes of preventing a jury from finding a way to punish Mehserle for the crime in a less severe manner.

Perry said Deputy District Attorney David Stein presented enough evidence over the past month to justify having the jury consider what is known as the lesser included crimes of murder.

In general, the jury would have to find that Mehserle took the following actions to reach the following crimes:

n second-degree murder: Mehserle knew the actions he was taking could cause a death but took those actions regardless;

n voluntary manslaughter: Mehserle acted in the heat of passion or believed his life was in danger but used too much force in defending himself;

n involuntary manslaughter: Mehserle's actions were grossly negligent and caused a death, or the death was caused while and because Mehserle was committing another crime.

Closing arguments in the case will be made Thursday, and it is expected the jury will begin deliberations late Thursday or Friday.

[Filo]

There’s a reason effective weapons aren’t allowed to be owned by citizens in CA...

Because the cops and politicians have every reason to be scared? Probably so.

Meanwhile we in CA can own any weapons we want. The Constitution takes priority over any illegal local ordinances.

[Filo]

I was wrong.

I'm sure you're used to it by now. Most rational people would be pretty embarrassed to admit that they support this murderer, but you just go right on.

[DCBryan1]

He's not a murderer in our country until proven so. I never said I supported him. All I pointed out that legally he had no intent on premeditated murder.

All one has to do is look at one page of your posting history to find out what you really are.

I thought that you were only an, ignorant, blowhard, petulant child, but worse, you a BIGOT, and the worst kind.

[Filo]

He's not a murderer in our country until proven so.

Agreed. And at least you were wise enough to refrain from saying "in a court of law." OJ is still a murderer regardless of the result of the trial. Same with this moron. The video evidence covers that whether or not the jury is bamboozled by the badge and related nonsense.

I never said I supported him.

You didn't have to.

All I pointed out that legally he had no intent on premeditated murder.

And that you thought he should get off, etc.

Meanwhile, even the quoted statement above is wrong. He had his taser out (and shouldn't have since the victim was already under two jackboots and had cuffs on) then he decided to put it away, exchanging it for his gun. He then presented his weapon, aimed and fired at the back of a restrained man. That's murder 1, friend.

All one has to do is look at one page of your posting history to find out what you really are.

Brilliant and always correct. If I posted a picture you'd also see strikingly handsome.

I thought that you were only an, ignorant, blowhard, petulant child, but worse, you a BIGOT, and the worst kind.

And just how am I a bigot? Because I recognize that the police are almost all corrupt bastards who don't deserve to be in my employ?

All of the cops and bootlickers here prove my contention straight away by defending this dipweed and implying that his only mistake was not shooting the rest of the hooligans.

Look at it this way - if a "civilian" had done the same thing what would you say?

A handful of good samaritans break up a fight and detain the brawlers. Two of them take one of the guys, tie his hands behind his back and then sit on him. One of the others,a CCW holder, pulls out his weapon and shoots the restrained man in the back.

What do you say then?

Never mind answering. I know what you'll say already: "cops are different, doing a hard job, blah, blah, blah."

All nonsense, of course, but I'm sure you'll say it.

[Flash Bazbeaux]

“Oakland would have been better served giving guns to a troup of chimps.”

Oakland? Oscar Grant was from Hayward. He was killed by Bart Police riding Bart. It is mere chance that he was at an Oakland station at the time. If they had pulled him off the train two stops further down he’d have been in San Leandro. Four stops, in Hayward. Oakland cops and the City of Oakland have NOTHING to do with this.

But the rioting pukes need a gathering spot, so we’re it.

[Filo]

Oakland? Oscar Grant was from Hayward. He was killed by Bart Police riding Bart. It is mere chance that he was at an Oakland station at the time. If they had pulled him off the train two stops further down he’d have been in San Leandro. Four stops, in Hayward. Oakland cops and the City of Oakland have NOTHING to do with this.

Fair 'nuff. Substitute "BART" or "The Bay Area" or "California" or "The United States" for "Oakland" and we're still golden.

[Pigsley]

Spot on.

[Pigsley]

Spot on.

[Pigsley]

Make sure you don’t call the cops when they break into yer Mam’s basement and take your penny jar.

[Filo]

Make sure you don’t call the cops when they break into yer Mam’s basement and take your penny jar.

I don't call the cops. Period.

They can't be trusted to not shoot indiscriminately (as Mehserle, amongst many others, proves) and they rarely solve crimes anyway.

[Pigsley]

Good luck with not ever calling the cops. I've had very good experiences with cops. I do know they are human and there is an occasional bad apple.

Oh, here is a fun idea for you, since you live in the Bay Area...go down to the disgusting Bart Station that takes you to the airport and stand there for 5 minutes at a ticket machine and see how many scumbag, animals try to scam you, touch you physically, try to intimidate you or just grab your money. Now, make sure and be very nice while they are abusing you....don't get all p o’d if they call you all kinds of names if you don't want to hand that $20 over to them for the kind “help”. And if somebody clubs you over the head and steals your wallet, do make sure not to call an evil cop.

[Filo]

Good luck with not ever calling the cops.

Thank you.



I've had very good experiences with cops.

As have I, once or twice.

I do know they are human and there is an occasional bad apple.

Sure. That's the 99% giving the 1% a bad name part.

Those in the 99% aren't all bad all of the time so you aren't always going to have a bad experience with them, but they are almost all right on the verge of being just like Mehserle or the clowns who beat Rodney King or the idiots who billy-clubed an unconscious driver thrown from his car or the dimwits who pulled a quadriplegic from his wheelchair and tossed him over a wall to pat him down or the nimrod who pulled over a motorcyclist and shot him in the back 1.2 seconds after exiting his patrol car (at least he's doing time) or the a-hole who murdered a young mother in front of her family for holding a vegetable peeler or the dirt bags who shot Amadou Diallo 100+ times for showing his ID (or trying to) or the worthless 'tards who tasered a grandma in her wheelchair or the hundreds of imbeciles who have shot dogs for no reason and so on.

Oh, here is a fun idea for you, since you live in the Bay Area...go down to the disgusting Bart Station that takes you to the airport and stand there for 5 minutes at a ticket machine and see how many scumbag, animals try to scam you, touch you physically, try to intimidate you or just grab your money. Now, make sure and be very nice while they are abusing you....don't get all p o’d if they call you all kinds of names if you don't want to hand that $20 over to them for the kind “help”. And if somebody clubs you over the head and steals your wallet, do make sure not to call an evil cop.

And, of course, any of those folks (aside from the one clubbing me over the head) deserve to be shot in the back while restrained for being who they are.

If I do it I go to jail.

If a cop does it then it's perfectly okay, right?

[Pigsley]

Must make for some long days for you, and your employer, though I doubt it on the 2nd. Logic is yer friend, try to get over the crossing guard thing.

[Filo]

Must make for some long days for you, and your employer, though I doubt it on the 2nd. Logic is yer friend, try to get over the crossing guard thing.

Did you want to try that again in English?

[conimbricenses]

Adding a ‘using a gun enhancement’ against a police officer who is supposed to carry a gun is beyond ludicrous.

Why? Cops add the "using a gun enhancement" all the time to up the charges against civilians who didn't actually use a gun in the crime but legally owned one and had it in their house or car. What's good for the goose...