Killer Cop’s Dad Unveils ‘Free Mehserle’ Sign During SF Giant Game-Oscar Grant Supporters Counter

Killer Cop Johannes Mehersele

Looks like the father and un-remorseful police supporters of the killer cop Johannnes Mehserle who killed an unarmed Oscar Grant in front of hundreds New Years morning 2009 will not let up. According to Indy Bay the father and Mehserle’s brother have hung huge ‘Free Mehserle‘ banners from their Yacht in the McCovey Cove which is right outside of AT&T Park where the SF Giants play.

The other night the Yacht and sign made national attention and enraged the community which quickly responded by sending out boats carrying signs calling for Justice 4 Oscar Grant.  Yesterday we talked about this on our Hard Knock Radio show and learned from our guests that when folks holding the Oscar Grant banners showed up, Mehserle’s dad tried to run his boat into their smaller craft.

What’s at stake here is that Mehserle who is facing involuntary manslaughter charges is scheduled to be sentenced November 5th. The verdict is seen by many as unfair and way too soft for a guy who has a history of violence both on and off the force. Many feel that Mehserle is literally getting away with murder. The fact that every single police union in California petitioned the California Assembly in support in addition to funding his defense where expert witnesses were being paid 50 and 60 thousand dollars a pop sent a clear message. The police although paid by tax payer dollars are not in step with many of the communities they serve.

There’s a reason why so many people of all backgrounds have taken to the streets in support of Grant. First, what took place that fateful night was egregious. Racial epithets being hurled at Grant moments before he was shot, police falsifying reports to cover up the incident, the men on the platform forced to sit there for handcuffed hours after Grant was killed was inexcusable. The fact that there were no police officers holding press conferences assuring the public what took place was wrong brought up painful memories for many who have been victim or witnesses police misconduct.

As was pointed out during our interview with organizers Rachel Jackson, Jack Bryson and Jack Heyman of the Longshoremen’s Union it should be remembered that  since the late 70s over 10 thousand people have been killed by police. Bryson pointed out the overwhelming majority Black and Brown men.

Since the verdict, the police and cops-can-do-no-wrong Mehserle supporters have held all sorts of rallies around the Bay Area in an attempt to influence the sentencing judge. The rallies are held as a way to show that the public backs Mehserle and believes his story that he accidentally grabbed his taser as opposed to a gun.

Most of these rallies have been held in the suburbs 20-30 miles outside of Oakland where Mehserle did his dirty deed. I guess they wouldn’t find a supportive crowd in this neck of the woods which again, should show you just how disconnected things are between the police and  communities they serve.

It’s interesting to note that the police have adopted many of the tactics and populus slogans used by activists to bring attention to political prisoners. At these often sparsely attended rallies, you will see signs that read ‘Justice 4 Johannes Mehserle‘, ‘Free Johannes‘ even the The System is broken Free Mehserle Organizers present the story as if Mehserle is the victim, even though he’s the one who did the killing and has  yet to personally apologize to  the family including Grant’s 4-year-old daughter.

The community responded to Mehserle's father Free Mehserle signs with signs supporting Grant

The stunt with the Yacht is pulled from the direct action playbook of activists who often find themselves shut out by mainstream media and resort to hanging banners in public spaces as a way to bring attention to a cause. What’s sad here is that the police already have tight relationships with the media. We saw that during the day of the verdict where reporters were mainstream reporters were embedded along with the police while everyone else including scores of independent journalists were threatened with arrests, even after show department issued press passes. The police had created a second tier of passes.

Grant supporters are not sitting back and allowing this to go unchallenged. In addition to dispatching boats of their own, there are a plans by the Longshoremen’s Union to shut down the port of Oakland this Saturday. As Jack Heyman pointed out, many of his members could relate to the Grant killing. They have sons and daughters who have been mistreated by the police. Many of his members have found themselves being hemmed up. Heyman pointed out that when their union was forming there were striking members shot by the police. Heyman wrote a great article explaining why the Longshoremen’s Union will be shutting things down this weekend in support of Oscar Grant. Justice for Oscar Grant! Jail for Killer Cops! Longshore To Shutdown All Bay Area Ports

There will be a big rally in support of Oscar Grant this Saturday at 12 noon in front of Oakland City Hall. Perhaps folks should show up with signs that read ‘Fry Mehserle’ instead of ‘Free Mehserle

written by Davey D

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Oscar Grant Trial Kicks Off-Killer Cop Had History of Violence, Community Speaks Out About Judge’s Bias Toward Police..

Today the Oscar Grant trial kicks off in Los Angeles with a whole lot of drama surrounding the proceedings. The most glaring is police officers rallying to invoke the Policeman’s Bill of Rights which essentially allow officers on trial to not have their history brought up while the accused or in this case victims will have their entire history along with the history of friends and family brought up and dragged through the mud.

The judge overseeing this trial is Robert Perry who came under fire for allowing corrupt cops to walk during the infamous Rampart Scandal. He’s been doing everything in his power to tilt the trial in the direction of killer cop Johannes Mershele. Among one of his more egregious rulings is to put a gag order on the famed Police Brutality lawyer John Burris. If thats not enough, Mershele’s lawyer Michael Rain‘s is pushing to have Black people excluded from the jury… Yes you read that right, they are attempting to get Black people excluded from the jury. In the interview I did with Rachel last night, she didn’t mention this but called me this morning as I’m penning this to give me the update.. We will be following up on this big time.

Also the defense gets to have an expert ‘film’ witness who is claiming the videos we all saw where Grant got shot by Mershele also shows Grant trying to punch the cop. Yes, they are claiming Grant tried to hit the cop while on the ground being restrained. Here’s the latest on the ruling to allow expert video witness http://bit.ly/cGmZU1

Click HERE to listen to Rachel's comments on Oscar Grant Trial updates

Below is an audio clip with Oakland organizer Rachel Jackson explaining in detail some of the things that will be taking place during the trial…

http://bit.ly/arc40Q

Rachel also gave us a break down of Mershelee’s history. Apparently he was known to run around and brandish his taser at inappropriate times and sadly just weeks before he killed Oscar Grant he had beat down 41-year-old Kenneth Carrethers who is an engineer who was overheard complaining about the how ineffective BART police were when it came to preventing crimes.

According to reports Mershelee overheard the comments and confronted Carrethers. The end result was Carrethers being severely beaten, hog-tied and driven to 3 different hospitals as the out of control Mershelee attempted to find a place that would cover up his brutality.

Carrethers was charged with resisting arrest but those charges were dropped not too long after Grant was killed. Here’s Rachel Jackson explaining the details behind this case.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcxtjrjD7II

On the eve of the Oscar Grant trial which will be held in Los Angeles, Minister Keith Muhammad explains to an Oakland crowd the Policeman’s Bill of Rights and how it will impact the upcoming trial against former BART cop Johannes Mehserle…

He also talks about the steps organizers took to make history by bringing a police officer to trial for shooting a citizen. It’s the first time this has ever happened in California. He pointed out there have been more than 8000 citizens killed by police in the past 20 years and not one conviction for wrongful death..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZ7OJVPnZIY

Also on the  of the Oscar Grant Trial we heard this sista from BAMN (By Any Means Necessary) who’s name is Yvette Falarca. Here she lays down all the obstacles organizers overcame to get to this point in history where a killer cop (Johannes Mehserle) has been brought to trial. This is a first in California history..

She also talks about the evidence that will NOT be allowed in the upcoming trial which includes Mershelees past brutality incidents..

We are also reminded that that it is up to us to make sure that everyone involved is aware that injustice will not be accepted in the city of Oakland…All the stops are being pulled out to set up this trial to fail. It ranges from gag orders placed on certain organizers and spokespeople like Attorney John Burris on down to additional provisions from the policeman’s Bill of Rights being enforced.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PElcxjQpTw

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