Bart Shooting Update

Former BART cop arrested on murder charge in Nevada
By Kelly Rayburn and Sean Maher
Oakland Tribune
Posted: 01/13/2009 09:19:48 PM PST



"OAKLAND - Johannes Mehserle, the former BART police officer who shot and killed an unarmed man early New Year's Day, was arrested on a murder charge in Nevada today, officials confirmed.

Mehserle, 27, shot and killed Oscar Grant III, 22, at an Oakland BART station in the early morning of New Year's Day. The shooting has prompted massive protests, especially after videos of the incident surfaced.

Mehserle was being held in Douglas County, Nev., on a no-bail warrant, a law-enforcement official said.

Since he was arrested in Nevada, he will face an extradition hearing before returning to Alameda County, a process that could take at least a few days.

Alameda County District Attorney Tom Orloff was

Christopher Miller, Mehserle's Sacramento-based attorney, could not be reached for comment, but his office confirmed the arrest.

Mehserle had been moving from place to place in recent days as he faced numerous death threats. He was reportedly arrested without incident.

"The family will certainly be relieved that (Orloff) has made some effort to bring him to justice," said attorney John Burris, who is representing the family in a $25 million claim against BART. "This is terrific. This is a very important step in healing the community."

Repeated calls to BART police tonight were not returned.

Mehserle had given no comment either to BART investigators or


Orloff's office following the incident in which cell phone videos appeared to show him shooting Grant as Grant lay facedown on the ground at the Fruitvale station.

Mehserle's resignation last week took away BART's ability to get a statement out of him, since he could no longer be fired for remaining silent.

Oakland's assistant police chief, Howard Jordan, said he hoped news of the arrest would help calm tensions among the more than 1,000 people who were expected to protest the shooting Wednesday.

"We're hoping that people act civilly and they take this recent action as a sign (Orloff) was committed to doing a job and moving forward with a complete, thorough and unbiased investigation," Jordan said.

Earlier today, Mayor Ron Dellums said that he understands the anger people feel after the shooting, but said taking that anger out on other people is an injustice in its own right.

"It's fundamentally contradictory to stand up for justice and then dispense injustice," Dellums said. "You can't operate on both planes. You can't walk both sides of the street." "

Reach Kelly Rayburn at 510-208-6435.