Oscar Grant Protesters Interrupt Bart Board Meeting, Demand Action

Oscar Grant Protesters Interrupt Bart Board Meeting, Demand Action Following Shooting Investigation

(August 27th, 2009) Oakland, CA. Community activists interrupted a public meeting of the BART Board of Directors this morning to demand action following the release of an independent investigation into the (alleged) New Years Day murder of Oscar Grant III by a BART police officer. Joined by Grant's uncle, they criticized a recent press conference in favor of Civilian Oversight of the BART police, claiming that BART manipulated the event in order to give the false appearance that the agency has satisfied the demands of the community and Grant's family.

Several protesters then delivered brief statements reiterating their dissapointment with a complete lack of accountability at BART, and noted that 8 months after the shooting of an unarmed and restrained passenger, BART has still not taken a single disiplinary action against any employee. They specifically demanded the immediate firing of Police Chief Gary Gee, General Manager Dorothy Dugger, and BART Police Officers Marisol Domenici and Tony Pirone. They also demanded that BART hold a press conference to discuss what actions it has taken and what actions it will take in response to the Meyers-Nave report.

In February, in an attempt to quell community outrage over their own internal affairs investigations (which claimed no wrongdoing) BART commissioned Oakland law firm Meyers-Nave to conduct an independent outside investigation of events surrounding the shooting of Grant. This investigation was recently completed and BART released a public report that excoriated the BART police and contradicted the original in-house investigations. And although BART police chief Gary Gee reacted to the report by promising to resign his post in December, the activists remain unsatisfied, and are calling for his immediate and outright removal. If their demands are not met, the activists promise to return in greater numbers to disrupt the next BART Board meeting.

The activists belong to a coalition called the COMMUNITY COUNCIL, which bills itself as a gathering of family members, people of faith, community activists and concerned people who are united in seeking Justice for Oscar Grant III.

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