Cop Smashes Glass —With Man's Head

Protesters angry over transit killing verdict

(NEWSER) - Oakland police arrested more than 80 people last night following protests by demonstrators who think a white transit cop got off easy for killing a black man. Dozens of stores were vandalized downtown, Dumpster fires raged in the middle of the street, and "Oakland is our amusement park tonight!" was tagged on one building . "This city is not the wild, wild West," said the police chief. "This city will not tolerate this sort of activity." The Oakland Tribune and AP have details on the looting. More»

He escapes murder charges in volatile racial case

(AP) - A white former transit officer was convicted of involuntary manslaughter today in the shooting death of an unarmed black man on an Oakland train platform in a 2009 encounter that set off days of rioting in the city. Prosecutors had wanted Johannes Mehserle convicted of murdering 22-year-old Oscar Grant, who was shot as he lay face-down. The officer testified he thought he was wielding his Taser. More»

(NEWSER) - Law enforcement officers from across the country descended on Oakland today for the funerals of four cops gunned down by a fugitive last weekend, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. All 815 members of the Oakland force attended while officers from other jurisdictions patrolled the streets in their stead. An overflow crowd that included 19,000 officers from as far as New York and Boston filled two stadiums. More»

(NEWSER) - More than 1,000 protesters took to the streets of downtown Oakland this evening to protest the New Year's Day shooting of an unarmed black man by a transit officer, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The protest comes hours after the officer, who has since resigned, was arrested and charged with murder. More»

Ex-officer surrendered on suspicion of murder

(NEWSER) - The transit officer who fatally shot an unarmed man on New Year's Day, sparking San Francisco-area riots, was arrested last night in Nevada on suspicion of murder, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Sources say Johannes Mehserle, 27, had fled California after receiving death threats in the wake of Oscar Grant's death. Mehserle resigned last week rather than answer investigators’ questions. More»