Safety

Oakland North reporter Teresa Chin provides an on-scene update of police arresting protesters who were reacting to the Johannes Mehserle sentencing.

Oakland North reporters Nicole Jones and Teresa Chin have been following tonight’s Johannes Mehserle sentencing protests. From the site of the first arrests, they filed these video reports.

A peaceful protest at Frank Ogawa Plaza turned ugly after the gathering was forced to break up at 6 p.m. Police estimated 300 to 500 protesters moved into the streets of downtown, where they blocked traffic and jumped on moving vehicles. For the full story, click here.

Updated 8:54 p.m.: Police have begun arresting protesters who have been wandering raucously around Oakland in response to the announcement of the Johannes Mehserle sentencing. Oakland Police spokesperson Jeff Thomason estimated that more than 100 protesters have been arrested.

Store owners boarded up windows and residents gathered in front of City Hall as news of a sentence in the Johannes Mehserle trial began to spread across Oakland Friday afternoon. The two-year sentence handed-down by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Perry is the lightest possible prison term for Mehserle’s conviction of involuntary manslaughter. Many Oakland residents were hoping for the maximum 14-year term while others wonder how Oakland will react as the day develops.

As Oakland awaits news from the Los Angeles sentencing of former BART police officer Johannes Mehserle, downtown businesses are preparing today for the possibility of violence. Storefronts around Frank Ogawa Plaza are boarded up including the Oakland police Internal Affairs office, the offices of Youth Radio and the Men’s Wearhouse and Foot Locker stores nearby.

As Oakland awaits this Friday’s sentencing of Johannes Mehserle, civic leaders and residents alike are working together to keep the city’s reaction peaceful. The former BART police officer was convicted in July of involuntary manslaughter in the January, 2009, shooting death of Oscar Grant. In the wake of Grant’s death, as well as of Mehserle’s conviction this summer, protests in downtown Oakland turned violent.

On Thursday, the Oakland City Attorney’s Office announced it was suing four people for their alleged role in the looting and vandalism that followed the protests after the Johannes Mehserle verdict on July 8, 2010.

Two measures on the ballot this November give voters the chance to decide the future of public safety funding in Oakland. If either Measure BB or Measure X passes, the city can again collect funds for a slew of public safety programs that currently have no revenue to support them.

As part of National Crime Prevention Month this October, the Oakland Police Department is collaborating with the city’s Neighborhood Services Coordinators to promote awareness of issues such as victimization, volunteerism and creating safer communities.