Police Misconduct NewsWatch for 01-18-09

A Photograph of the Olympia Washington Anti-Police Brutality march on 01/16/09.

Police Brutality Protesters Violently March Against Police Violence
A small protest in Olympia, Washington Friday, against police brutality and the shooting death of Jose Ramirez-Jiminez last year, took a violent turn after protesters were herded towards a police substation by Olympia police. The group of about 40 protesters began lobbing torches and road flares at the police station.

Police say about 20 of the protesters were detained and 3 were brought up on misdemeanor charges that may be changed to charges of felony attempted arson.

Jose Ramirez-Jimenez was shot several times in the back while in his car after a police chase that ended with his car blocked in. That shooting was declared justified last year by an investigation by police agencies from the surrounding area but some police accountability groups in Olympia claim the investigation was biased.
...

I know this won't endear me to anyone who reads this blog, whether they are for or against police brutality, but I have an opinion on this...

Now, I'm not going to go into whether or not I think the shooting or the protest were valid, that's up to the people in Olympia to decide as they should know better than I do whether their police can be trusted to investigate such incidents. But, I do want to address whether or not I think using violence as a means to protest acts of police violence is productive or not.

First, it seems counter-intuitive to me for people to declare that they are against police brutality but do so by resorting to violent acts themselves. After all, how can you suggest that one group should not break the law while you do?

Next, I think it causes more harm than good. Confidence and trust in the police among the US population in general is still incredibly high, last suggested at 73% in fact. So if you want popular support, which is what you need in order to enact police accountability changes, you first need to change some minds with information and persuasion. Resorting to violence only plays into the hands of police and police-friendly media by making police accountability a fringe issue instead of a mainstream one.

Ultimately. all the rioting and death threats do is give the police an excuse to use violence again and gives them leverage to enact new laws that increase secrecy in the name of protecting police from a "violent public". It ultimately makes it harder to fight police brutality by allowing police departments to keep it secret from the public by law instead of by underhanded tactics.

The fight against police misconduct is a battle of public perception, and so far the police have been winning by being able to convince politicians and the public that the rights of police officers outweigh the rights of citizens, and they use the actions of violent protesters as an effective weapon in that fight.

So, when you organize a protest or a march against police brutality, make sure you do it in a way that doesn't give the police any more weapons than they already have to use against us in the process.

That's my opinion at least...

Is The Oakland PD Reaching For Accountability Or Resorting To Scapegoating?
The Oakland PD in California is looking into the possibility of firing 11 of their officers who are in the midst of a search warrant scandal in which 18 officers were accused of lying on warrant requests by stating that substances purchased in buy-bust operations had been tested when they weren't.

That scandal resulted in 12 cases being dismissed in several others being re-investigated, two federal civil rights suits, and may result in the department being found in violation of the settlement reached involving the legendary Riders scandal.

Lawyers representing the cops say they were trained to do this and are being used as scapegoats to deflect the legal threats resulting in the warrant flap and the department initially stood by the officers by saying that the mistakes were a result of insufficient training.

Both parties are likely right, while the officers should have known better than to commit material falsehoods on police reports and warrant requests, their commanders probably encouraged the practice until they got caught doing it.

Canada Allows Accused To Review Police Disciplinary Records, The US Still Keeps Records Secret
The Canadian Supreme Court decided that defendants facing criminal charges have the right to access police disciplinary records. This is, of course, not the same as the court saying these records should be public information, but it's more than the US allows currently where putting officers on a "Brady list" which is distributed to defense lawyers to indicate problems with misconduct is a voluntary action by police departments and local prosecutors.

But no, I still don't want to go to Canada since they've been having just as much a problem with misconduct as we've got down here... They still do try hard to be like us up there these days.

Cops Found To Have Used Excessive Force Despite "Broken" Cameras
From The Agitator, Prince George's County police officers in Maryland were found to have used excessive force when they detained a reporter who was investigating improper use of government resources. The reporter won $5,000 in the case for shoulder injuries that occurred when she was ordered out of her car at gunpoint and her arm was yanked behind her back.

Unsurprisingly, all of the officers who responded reported that their dashboard cameras weren't working that day... yeah, riiiight.

Kansas Prosecutor Insists He Was Right To Distribute Photos Of Naked Teens
An Anderson County prosecutor in Kansas thought it was a good idea to show pictures of local teenagers having sex at a party to area parents in order to raise awareness about teen drinking...

The prosecutor announced his plan to show the photos from a party where teens were caught drinking to parents of the teens who were there in a local paper. In response to the article the mother of one teenager called Campbell and told him not to share the photos with anyone because she claimed her daughter, depicted half-naked while having sex in one photo, was the victim of sexual assault that night, not consensual sex.

According to the court ruling, the prosecutor challenged the mother, saying he did not need her permission. He then sent letters to parents of 12 teens, inviting them to observe the photos and five families showed up to view the pictures with the prosecutor.

Ultimately the prosecutor was re-elected despite being suspended by a disciplinary board over the incident and now the Kansas Supreme Court has decided that the suspension was insufficient and doubled it, but the prosecutor will still continue on since he can't be removed from office and still defends his tactics.

I guess government officials are the only ones allowed to distribute child pornography...

Colorado Officer Faces Trial For Stalking Ex-Girlfriend
A Lafayette Colorado police officer has plead not-guilty to charges of stalking his ex girlfriend, harassment, official misconduct, and criminal mischief domestic violence.

The officer is currently on unpaid leave and faces charges over accusations that he kept following his ex and her new boyfriend, sent her text messages saying she was being watched, text-messaged her when he pulled her boyfriend over and ticketed him, attempted to have her fired from work, and damaged her car during an argument.

Georgia Officer Commits Suicide After Being Accused Of Sexual Assault
Sadly, a Dalton police officer decided to take his own life shortly after the Dalton police department began investigating accusations, made via a 911 call, that Sparks had sexually assaulted a woman while responding to a "disturbance call".

The report, while not revealing whether the officer left behind any family, does describe that fateful 911 call:

"He said a girl was “picked up at the Oyster Pub and brought to (the Guest Inn) by a Dalton cop, and she was molested by that cop.” He asked for an officer to be sent to Room 128. When the dispatcher asked for a name or badge number of the officer, the caller said, “No, ma’am, but she said she could recognize him.” A female is heard sobbing during the call."

The department and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are still investigating the allegations and the officer's resultant suicide. Yes, what the officer was accused of doing is a really bad thing, but it was his response to being caught by taking the easy way out that multiplied the harm done by his misconduct.

Police Misconduct NewsWatch for 01-16-09

A review of police misconduct and jail abuse stories making the headlines

Site News
The first annual 2008 worst police misconduct video of the year reader's poll has ended, expect results from that poll to be posted later along with additional information about the stories behind those videos. To see the candidates again, read here.

In Local News

A Year In King County Jail For A Crime He Didn't Commit
21-year old Glenn Proctor was released from King County Jail today after spending a year there for a crime he never committed. King County Prosecutors built their case mostly around eyewitness testimony but a video tape taken from security cameras was analyzed by an expert who concluded Proctor was not the shooter shown on that surveillance tape.

Ex-Cop Lawmaker Wants GPS Devices Surgically Implanted In Sex Offenders
Washington state legislator and ex-Seattle police officer Al O'Brien is proposing legislation to have GPS devices surgically implanted in sex offenders in Washington State.

The proposal stems from news reports of three offenders cutting off their GPS bracelets last year, two of which did so after probation officers ordered them to sleep under bridges when they failed to find housing for them after release from prison.

O'Brien claims he intends to only have the devices implanted in what he considers to be the worst of the worst and is proposing funding for a study to be performed by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, a political lobbyist group representing several different police unions across the state, in order to determine if implants would work better than bracelets.

In National News

Tennessee Officer Indicted For Sexually Assaulting A Minor
A Hamilton County deputy, James Spates, in Tennessee has been indicted for two counts of sexual battery by an officer and a count of official misconduct for allegations that he pulled off the road and then performed an inappropriate strip search on a juvenile female suspect and then gave her his name and number in hopes for a date.

Iowa Cop Charged With Assaulting A Woman Who Said No
A Poweshiek County deputy in Iowa has been charged with assault after attempting to sexually assault a woman in October. Apparently the deputy, who has since resigned, tackled a woman after she refused his advances.
I know it's a hard thing for some officers to understand, but no still means no even if you're a cop.

Witnesses Claim Police In West Virginia Brutally Beat Mentally Ill Teen
The mother of 19 year old Calvin Wilkerson and at least two other unrelated witnesses are claiming that officers from different agencies in Williamson West Virginia used racial slurs as they beat, kicked, and then released a police dog on her son when she had called for them to detain him on a mental health warrant because she ran out of his medicine.

From the article in the Williamson Daily News:

"The alleged witness had a different story regarding the scene. He said he watched Calvin hobble out of the back door, but was unable to run because of injuries to his leg. He said he watched as close to eight officers from all three law enforcement agencies in Mingo County allegedly beat and kicked the young man while the dog was let loose on him once again.

“They kept yelling, ‘Why don’t you run now, you black SOB?” the witness said he heard.

Another witness, who also asked to remain anonymous, said he drove upon the scene and saw something completely different than described in the criminal complaint.

The witness said when he first saw the commotion he thought it was a training session – until he heard the screams. When he heard the man writhing on the ground and screaming while officers kicked him and the dog bit him, he realized it was real, but said he still found it hard to believe it was happening.

“This only happens in movies,” he said. “Not here at my home.”"

Two Nevada Officers Arrested For Slapping Handcuffed Detainee And Lying About It
Two North Las Vegas police officers in Nevada have been arrested on charges of official misconduct after they allegedly attempted to goad a bar patron, Luis Enrique Vargas, into fighting them. One of the officers is accused of repeatedly striking the man after he was handcuffed and both are accused of filing a false police report in the case when surveillance video contradicted their reports.

From an article in the Las Vegas Journal:

"At one point, Miles told Vargas to stand up. Vargas tried to comply and answered, "I'll sit down. I'll sit down for you homie," the report states. Miles then slapped Vargas and said, "I'm not your homie."

Miles then put his face in Vargas' face and said "what-don't-you-get," -- slapping his face four times to punctuate each word -- "I'm not your homie," according to the report.

Later, when Balelo told Vargas he was under arrest for assault with a deadly weapon, Vargas remarked that the officers were "some crooked (expletives)."

Miles replied, "Oh (expletive) dude, what did you say?"

Vargas replied, "Crooked."

Miles then said, "We're some crooked (expletives)," and grabbed Vargas, who was on his knees, by his handcuffed wrists. He slammed Vargas to the ground face-first, according to the report."

Massachusetts Judge Hears Case In Battle Over Redacted Police Files
A judge in Worcester MA heard arguments today in a case between the city of Worcester and The Telegram & Gazette, a local paper there, over how much public records can be redacted by police.

The paper issued a request for internal investigation histories for an officer with a history of complaints and, in return, the paper got 764 completely blacked-out pages.Lawyers for the police union and city argue it's to protect the officer's privacy and the privacy of complainants but the paper says the redacting hid complete cases, not just identifiable information. The judge says he may issue a ruling at a later date.

Ultimately, in this case, it's a question of how much misconduct the police can keep hidden from the public... generally the answer ends up being quite a lot.

Johannes Mehserle Charged With Murdering Oscar Grant - But More Questions Remain

Alameda Country District Attorney Tom Orloff announced that his office has charged Johannes Mehserle with murder in the shooting death of Oscar Grant on New Years Day. Orloff, according to the Press-Enterprise, went on to say that "At this point, what I feel the evidence indicates, is an unlawful killing done by an intentional act and from the evidence we have there's nothing that would mitigate that to something lower than a murder..."

Mehserle was arrested on a fugitive warrant for those charges yesterday evening in Nevada and is to be transported back to Alameda County, California some time before Friday after he waived his rights to an extradition hearing today in a Nevada court.

While the attorney representing Grant's family said the news of these charges was "terrific" and "consistent with the evidence I have seen". The rapid turn-around from previous delay tactics used by the BART authority and the District Attorney's office leaves some questions unanswered.

First, if the evidence of intentional murder gathered by the BART authorities and DA's office in this case were so conclusive, why is it that in previous news conferences the BART authority stated that, despite confiscating numerous cell phone cameras and other video evidence from several witnesses that night, the videos they had collected were too inconclusive to draw any conclusions?

Those previous statements either evidence an attempted cover-up by BART officials that should be investigated as aiding and abetting a murder suspect, or these statements indicate that officers who confiscated evidence of a crime that night had tampered with evidence of a murder and must be investigated.

Either way, the contrast between the DA's charge that the evidence was conclusive and BART's previous statements that it was inconclusive demands answers.

Next, there has been no word on whether other officers are being investigated for their participation in the murder of Oscar Grant. As our analysis of the video evidence that was released to the public by witnesses showed, another officer had punched Oscar Grant before he was taken to the ground, restrained, and then shot in the back by BART officer Mehserle.

This alone would make that officer an accessory to murder if it wasn't also for his assistance in holding Grant down with his knee on Grant's neck when he was shot. As our analysis showed, that second officer watched as Mehserle started to draw his service weapon and shifted his hold on Grant in order to move out of the line of fire while still restraining Grant when he was shot.

Clearly this would evidence that the other officer was aware that Mehserle was about to shoot Oscar Grant and that his actions to continue to hold Grant on the floor of the station while Mehserle fired would make him an accessory to murder. Since this is the case, the silence about whether other parties might face charges in this case is equally disturbing as the disparity of statements between BART and the District Attorney's announcement today.

The arrest of Mehserle gives us more questions than answers, and those questions demand further investigation and transparency, not more silence and inaction.

BART Officer Johannes Mehserle Arrested In Nevada

Ex-BART Officer Johannes Mehserle's booking photograph: via KOLO TV in Nevada

Updated: 10:41 01-15-09
Updated post available here. - 13:00 01/15/09 


According to The Mercury News, Johannes Mehserle was arrested Tuesday night by Douglas County sheriff's deputies in northwest Nevada on a no-bail warrant reportedly related to the Fruitvale BART station shooting death of Oscar Grant on January 1.

While confirming the arrest, Alameda County DA Tom Orloff's office refuses to discuss the case until a press conference to be held sometime on Wednesday. However, according to a press release issued by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, they were notified Tuesday morning that an arrest warrant for homicide from the Alameda County Superior Court was pending against Mehserle and that Mehserle surrendered to police after his lawyer was notified of the warrant.

Mehserle waived his right to extradition hearings at a 9:15 am hearing in court while wearing leg and wrist shackles Wednesday and California authorities have until Friday to take custody of him and return him to Alameda County.

Mehserle's lawyer has refused to comment on the arrest, as he has for all other aspects of the case, but the lawyer representing Grant's family in a civil case against the Bay Area Rapid Transit agency over the shooting applauded the arrest.

You can read our analysis of the video which shows why Mehserle and at least one of his fellow officers should be charged in this case here. Also, you can find an analysis of why we shouldn't get our hopes up quite yet that Mehserle will face any real accountability for his actions that took Grant's life just a few hours into the new year in this NewsWatch issue.

*personal note - Some newer readers may wonder why I'm covering this case so closely. First, while it's common to hear allegations of unwarranted shootings by police officers, it's rare that such a shooting is captured on video and even rarer still that such a video makes it out into the public domain like this one has.

While certainly saddening and upsetting to see such a video, and it may sound strange to think it, but I hope that something positive comes from his seemingly senseless death.

I say this not just for his family, for whom my heart goes out to... and not just for the residents of the Oakland California area either... but that it may get people across the nation to consider that police accountability, transparency, and a serious look at racism in police agencies is something that we all need to push for.

Ultimately I hope this convinces people that we should all do what we can to ensure that what happened to Oscar Grant doesn't happen to anyone else, anywhere, ever again. That's why I've been covering this case... because any of us could could have been Oscar Grant, or may yet be.

Updated: 10:41 01-15-09

Police Misconduct NewsWatch for 01-13-09

The "Worst Police Misconduct Video of 2008" reader's poll is ending tomorrow... Sure, they are all bad, but the worst ones will get their own story when voting ends. So pick which one you think exemplifies the worst example of police misconduct that was captured on video in 2008.

In Local News

Police Officer Fired For His Beliefs Rehired After Winning Settlement
A Mountlake Terrace police officer, Jonathan Wender, who was fired for allegedly lying about a call he received about a small pot growing operation has won a suit against that department worth $812,500 of back pay and he got his job back too...

In this case, however, it seems he didn't deserve to be fired as the officer had a reputation for being exceptionally honest and was actually fired because he was an outspoken member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition that argued that police spend too many resources in the war on drugs which could be spent in better ways to achieve better results and some of his fellow officers didn't like that and had him drummed out of the force.

The settlement presumably proved he didn't lie as he was accused of doing and that he was instead targeted for his stated beliefs, not his actions. Wender currently teaches criminal justice courses at a local university and says he would like to resume active duty as a police officer again soon.

King County Jail Deal With DOJ Made Official
The King County council has approved of a deal made between the US DOJ and the King County Executive Ron Sims to implement reforms at the infamous King County Jail that would improve conditions, improve medical care, and decrease incidents of detainee physical and sexual abuse by guards. The reforms are expected to cost $2,000,000 up front and will be monitored by a third party for compliance to the agreement under threat of a federal lawsuit filed by the DOJ.

Man Jailed For Crime That May Never Have Happened Wins Settlement
Grant County Washington has settled a lawsuit with a man they kept imprisoned for 7 months for a crime that never happened. The man, Felipe Vargas was accused of molesting his girlfriend's daughter in 2003, but the girl later recanted and said she made up the story because she resented him. The man still has another suit pending against his first public defender.

National News

The Long Fall From Hero Cop To Alleged Felon
The Ogden Utah police officer who was once called a hero for his off-duty actions to stop a shooter at a local mall has resigned over allegations of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and a police brutality claim as well. Some rumors are swirling around this case that suggest there were other cases, but that he used his status as a hero in the press to keep the department from doing anything about the complaints.

NYPD Bar Fight Cops Plead Down To Getting $75 Tickets
Two NYPD officers involved in a bar fight two years ago have made plead guilty to disorderly conduct, simple violations, in order to avoid trial for misdemeanor official misconduct charges.

The officers were accused of attempting to cover up the involvement of other officers in that fight which resulted in a Yonkers man being severely injured. Three other officers are still facing charges of third degree assault, a misdemeanor.

Another Victim Of Transit Cops On New Years
A Long Island New York man is claiming that transit police at Penn Station attacked and beat him to the point where he required hospitalization on New Years. He also claims that officers humiliated him by parading him around and cheering that he was the first arrest of the New Year.

The man claims the beating and arrest stem from him accidentally bumping into an MTA officer.


Laredo Texas Family Claims Police Brutality, Police Claim They Injured Themselves
A Laredo Texas family is accusing the Laredo police department of brutalizing them and then filing false charges against them as they claim that an overly aggressive cop came on a noise complaint when they were setting up for a daughter's birthday and then escalated things way beyond what they should have been.

Officers, however, claim that the people who were injured were hurt due to self inflicted injuries and that they maced and tasered others because they, the armed officers, were attacked by the family for no reason.

Hmm... let's see, which is more likely? An over-zealous cop losing his temper or a whole family, including kids, attacking armed officers for no reason?... uh huh.

South Elgin Police Officer Resigns To Avoid Answering Internal Affairs Investigation
A South Elgin Illinois police officer resigned before allowing himself to be interviewed over misconduct allegations. The department refuses to answer any questions over what the misconduct charges are, but if the officer resigned and lawyered up in order to avoid answering any questions about it, it's probably fairly serious.

I don't know if it frightens you that there might be a serious crime that happened which the department is keeping secret from the public like that to protect the privacy of an officer who already quit, but it worries me.

BART Shooting Updates
So, the BART police department completed it's internal probe of itself in the Oscar Grant shooting by one of it's own officers and forwarded it on to Alameda County DA Tom Orloff without recommending criminal charges, that DA is still unsure if he's even going to bother pressing charges in that case. The BART council appointed it's own members to a police oversight committee, of itself, to look at the issue and calls it civilian oversight. And the DOJ is sending mediators to help BART with it's community relations issues, but it's not looking at any possible civil rights violations performed by the department or officers in question...

So, in other words, nothing has actually happened and nothing is happening to actually address this needless killing. Same frustrating story as always I suppose. In response to the BART Police Department's internal probe not recommending criminal charges Oscar Grant's family lawyer, John Burris, has roundly condemned the internal investigation. Meanwhile, more demonstrations are planned, and rightfully so.

Our additional coverage of the Oscar Grant shooting is here, here, and here.

Police Misconduct NewsWatch for 01-12-09

A review of police misconduct and jail abuse stories making the headlines

Youth Manager In Juvi-Jail Accused Of Sexually Abusing a Minor
A "youth manager" at the Marion County Juvenile Detention Center in Indiana is accused of forcing a 16 year old detainee into performing sexual acts for him on Christmas Eve. That same facility was the subject of a damning sexual abuse investigation just a few years ago.

The man is facing felony counts of child seduction and sexual misconduct and said he only spent a couple minutes alone with the boy when video cameras recorded him escorting the boy into his office where he stayed for nearly an hour with the blinds shut where he allegedly demanded that the boy perform oral sex on him.

$45 Million Lawsuit Filed For Repeated Incidents Of Civil Rights Abuses in MD
Salisbury MD is facing a $45 million lawsuit alleging that at least nine of the Salisbury police department's officers repeatedly brutalized and harassed Ceasar Bernard Savage. The first attack was in Jan 07 when officers attacked him after searching his car without his permission as part of an alleged burglary and/or drug investigation after they found evidence of neither. Savage was beaten so badly he awoke in the hospital with a broken jaw and missing teeth. But it didn't end there, read the story to find out what else they did to this poor guy, all without ever finding any evidence of a crime.

Federal Suit Against NY District Attorney For Protecting Homophobic Cops Dismissed
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against the Monroe County DA in NY that alleged that he conspired with the Rochester police union to ensure that cops accused of shouting homophobic slurs and beating a group of gay men would not face criminal indictments in that case in exchange for the union's powerful endorsement during re-election.

A separate civil lawsuit against the city of Rochester for the officers conduct during the incident in question is still moving ahead.

Criminal Case Against Cops Accused Of Kicking HANDCUFFED Man Hinges on Whether Man Had Knife?
A bizarre excessive force case in Cape May County New Jersey has two Wildwood cops facing charges of excessive force for kicking a suspect in the head while he was handcuffed... but it appears the case hinges on the testimony of the cops there who seem to all have different stories about whether the suspect had a knife and, if he did, who found it...

Of course... not clear on how that matters considering the guy was kicked while he was handcuffed.


Officer Suspended After Refusing To Cooperate With Internal Investigation Also Faces Criminal Investigation
One time "officer of the year" with the Yonkers NY PD has been suspended without pay after refusing to answer questions during an internal investigations probe into allegations that the had robbed a suspected drug dealer at gunpoint.

While he is now also the subject of a criminal investigation by the US DOJ in this case, he has initiated a lawsuit against the Yonkers PD for suspending him and is attempting to retire from the force with his full benefits.

High Ranking Police Officer Suspended For Issuing Threats Over Radio
A Gloucester Mass police lieutenant has been suspended for only five days for issuing threatening statements over police radio. It appears that his radio was on while he was having a heated exchange over the phone where he threatened to hire someone to wreck his daughter-in-law's car.

Many petitioned for stronger sanctions because the episode was also aired on local news stations, but the department said it wanted to issue punishment that the union wouldn't appeal against. The high ranking officer will also have to attend anger management classes.


Sheriff Asks For Some Time Off For Personal Matters
Guadalupe NM is looking for a new sheriff since their old one has requested a leave of absence to attend to personal matters... the personal matter? He was arrested for driving drunk.

Wonder How Badly The Other Officers Behave When The Chief Misuses His Authority To Protect Bad Cops?
A Shoughton Ma police chief trial is scheduled to start today on charges that he misused his authority as a chief of police to threaten a businessman who filed a complaint against one of his officers to drop his complaint and for attempting to coerce that man into settling his civil claim against that officer.

When Assault Becomes Murder - An Analysis of the Oscar Grant Shooting

The videotaped shooting death of Oscar Grant by BART police officer Johannes Mehserle has stirred angry demands for criminal charges from the public as BART officials and the Alameda County District Attorney have dragged their feet.

Officials claim that they need more time to investigate what the public has already seen... a police officer shooting an unarmed man who posed no threat in the back, in cold blood.

The BART police department, transit authority, and District Attorney, Tom Orloff, have all made it clear that they are desperately seeking evidence to absolve the officer by floating speculation that it was an accident of some sort or that there was some justification for the shooting that wasn't captured on the three different videos that have been released to the public... videos that all show the same thing... an unjustified killing.

Fellow police officers have also tried to do the same by floating the theory of "taser confusion" as cause for this killing, suggesting that it's easy to confuse a brightly colored device that is lighter than, has a different grip than, and is supposed to be carried on the opposite side than a service weapon.

Even if we accept this dubious possibility the death is still a criminal matter by way of shear negligence. But there's another disturbing aspect to this death which makes it a crime of intent. it is an aspect that has been entirely missed so far, but was ultimately the series of actions that needlessly put Oscar Grant in harm's way that night.

To understand what caused the arrest of Oscar Grant to spiral downward into murder we need to examine the actions of the other officer, not just Mehserle's. It was this officer who escalated the arrest of an unarmed and cooperative suspect into a use of force situation without any apparent reason whatsoever, and that is what ultimately cost Oscar Grant his life.

The Analysis
Note: the following analysis is of this third video from KTVU shot from the train by a cell phone camera. Even though it's quality isn't as good as the others and I can't embed it here, it's important to use this as an index because it starts before the others and shows the unnamed officer strike Grant in the face, which is likely what caused others to start filming.

An analysis of this video shows that:

At mark 00:10 an unidentified bald officer walks up and punches Oscar Grant in the face. This is obvious in the video as the officer's arm moves forward and Grant's head snaps back and Grant begins to collapse. After striking Grant the officer moves him to a seated position and Grant puts his hands up palm forward in supplication, the officer orders another man to sit and then leaves after a few seconds.

At 01:23, after the bald officer returns he appears to order the detainees arrest, this is apparent as the officers were talking with the suspects until the bald officer marched back over. At this point Mehserle moves Grant to a kneeling position and pulls Grant's arms behind him, there is no sign of resistance at this point.

However, at 01:26 Mehserle pushes Grant face first to the ground while the bald officer plants his knee on Grant's neck, which causes Grant to involuntarily squirm due to the pain of that maneuver. Up to this point there appeared to be no threat posed by Grant to justify the use of this tactic.

At 01:28 Mehserle makes a furtive grab for his service weapon, but then stops.

At 01:45 Mehserle grabs at his service weapon again, this time he continues to try to pull it from the holster for at least 2 full seconds, ample time to have figured out that this was not a taser which is held in a different type of holster and has a different feel.

Four seconds later, at 01:49, the bald officer shifts his stance to the other side of Grant to put himself out of the line of fire, but resumes his pain compliance hold with his knee on Grant's neck while Mehserle pulls his service weapon from the holster. This would indicate that the order to fire, whether it was to fire a taser or the Mehserle's service weapon, came from the bald officer.

At 01:51 Mehserle gets into his stance and aims his weapon at Grant while the bald officer maintains his hold. If this was in prep for the application of a taser the bald officer would have moved away now to avoid getting shocked.

At 01:52 Mehserle fires a shot into Grant's back as the bald officer continues to hold him face down on the floor of the station.

It's only one second later, at 01:53, that the bald officer finally stands up and steps away from the mortally injured Grant.


The Conclusion
The actions of the unnamed bald officer's aggressive use of force, both when he punches Grant in the face at the beginning of the video and when he needlessly employed a pain compliance move on a suspect that was otherwise cooperative, are what ultimately led to Grant's death. It is why there must be criminal charges in this case, a case of assault that resulted in the death of an unarmed person...

To understand this, consider that the unnamed officer is seen "taking a knee" on Oscar Grant's neck. This police tactic is relatively new and used often as a pain compliance move that both immobilizes a suspect and causes severe pain in order to, supposedly, force dangerous suspects to comply with orders that would allow for restraints to be applied when they otherwise wouldn't.

Clip taken from the arrest of Mike Ladd at an anti-war march in Seattle on 03/2007. Charges against Ladd for resisting arrest were later dropped when this video proved the application of the officer's pain compliance holds prevented Ladd from following commands to put his hands behind his back.

The problem with this hold is that it does such a good job of immobilizing a suspect that it often renders them incapable of following commands to put their arms behind them so cuffs can be applied, especially if the person held has tried to catch their fall when thrown to the ground and ends up with an arm trapped underneath them when the hold is applied.

More than this, the hold causes so much pain that most people can't help but kick their legs and squirm in pain as a reflexive response to that pain, which often causes officers to use even more force to enact an arrest, including the use of another pain compliance tool called a taser.

The last image recorded on AP photojournalist Matthew Rourke's before he was arrested in St. Paul as documented here. It shows how suspects will often react involuntarily to the application of this painful move.

This problem with the "taking a knee" on a suspect's neck has been documented before and has resulted in suspect being cleared of resisting arrest charges upon review of video evidence before, yet the tactic remains a favorite of police officers everywhere. As seen numerous times in St. Paul during the RNC protests.

It was the other officer's rush to use force to enact the arrest of the otherwise non-threatening Oscar Grant and that officers rush to needlessly use a pain compliance hold on a person who presented no threat that set into motion the series of events which cost Oscar Grant his life on New Years morning... irregardless as to whether the bullet that tore through his back was fired accidentally or on purpose.

In other words, the two officers involved with detaining Oscar Grant intended to hurt him without justification that night, and that's considered a crime called assault. And when the crime of assault results in a death, that's considered murder, even if the death was the ultimate intent of the two officers involved or not.

Updated 17:39 01/11/09