Ex-Officer Sentenced With Manslaughter For Oakland Subway Shooting: The Correct Punishment?

The cop is only 22 yrs. old, probably nervous as a new mom have her first.
He is not a seasoned cop for Gods sake. Mistakes happen which are not
intentional and one should not be burned at the stake. Sometimes people
panic. I feel he deserved no punishment but more 1to1 training. The savage planet.
Any burning and rioting in the streets should be certainly curtailed. Save that for
the American Revolution..

and you think that 1 to 1 training is going to bring that kid back that he shot and killed? He doesn't need 1 on 1 training, he needs to never be able to work in law enforcement again. Whether he confused his gun for a tazer or not, he never should have reached for it considering the kid was HANDCUFFED. Why was he going for a weapon when the kid was OBVIOUSLY subdued, that is the question that needs to be asked..

I just can't see confusing a gun wth a taser, even in the heat of the moment.

should be patted on the back and told job well done

Come up with a better story. How can you confuse a gun with a taser?

should be shot in the back

He probably should have gotten convicted of second-degree murder. I don't buy the story about him confusing his gun with his taser. That said, Grant probably called him "pig", "white boy", or what have you, and riled the cop up as blacks are prone to do. Also, I've heard that Grant is a child rapist: he had just finished serving his sentence for raping a 13 year old. All child rapists/molesters should be executed, IMHO, and all rapists of adults should be put in prison for life with no parole. Rape is only barely less worse than murder, since it is basically torture, and its effects linger with the victim for life. That boy got what he deserved; the circumstances that led to it are unfortunate however.

Did not know the scum bag rapped a 13 yr. old. Sick freak. Castration is the only
answer. Use to think these sorts should have ECT treatments every week, but......
too easy.

Just watched some of the riot video - looked like everybody was having a party. Nothing
like the Rodney King riots -would not want to be a cop in today's brutal society- not enough
pay for risking life and limb - cops usually ride solitary -creepy sensation- could one imagine
life without cops? No one would be safe. I'd rather be a vigilante. Get paid more.
I believe Mehserke should have been acquitted.

you cant just go around shooting people because you are a cop..that doesnt give you no right at all..what was the young man even doing to deserve to get shot...and mistaking your gun for you taser..please..you know damn well where everything is located on your belt..nice excuse.

Harsher sentence needed here! If he thought it was a taser, the other officers whould have had to move away for fear of being tased also. But, in the end, to me, it really doesn't matter, there was no reason for using a taser on a handcuffed man on the ground. 10 years would be more appropriate.

Cops have gotten too trigger-friendly with their tasers. They almost need to have them confiscated for awhile until police officers learn that they're not toys.

Lets be fair, investigate the circumstances prior to the shooting. Was the officer involved in any other arrests in the hours prior to the incident? What exactly was the incident leading to the arrest.? How badly did the suspect resist the arrest? What is the officer's record of behaviour prior to this incident?
All these will determine the officers state of mind at the time of the incident.
These can all be mitigating circumstances that influenced the state of mind of the officer. For murderers, robbers etc the defence attorneys always bring mitigation into the picture. the same should apply here.

so what could he have been POSSIBLY thinking when he saw the suspect subdued and on the ground and in cuffs? Thats the only question that needs to be asked...

Unless you have been a police officer and involved in these hi tension incidents, you will never know. The most action and stress you will ever have to get involved in is remembering and dialling 911 when you need some police officer to save your ass.

just because i've never been a police officer I have been involved in high tension incidents. The fact that the person was subdued and on the ground shoudl have been a clear indication no matter WHAT stress level he was under to NOT pull a weapon, and i'm sorry but thats a bs excuse, officers are TRAINED for high tension stressful situations and a good majority of them DONT pull a gun or taser when someone is subdued and cuffed

I am not justifying what happened, all I'm saying is the investigation should look at what happened in the hours before the incident, to determine the state of mind of the cop. There may be mitigating circumstances. We also have no Idea what was happening outside the view of the cameras.

When I was a cop I entered many tense situations trying to calm the people, in a split second things can change for the worse. When the adrenaline kicks in everything becomes a blur and reactions become instinctive, I can believe the cop could have made an error.
They should find out who ordered that both the non-lethal and lethal weapons are carried so close together that an error could occur.

your telling me, that you could easily as an officer confuse your taser gun and a real gun?? I am not buying it. The cop made a serious mistake that cost someone their life. Whatever happened before hand was obviously under control due to him being handcuffed and on the groud, you being a prior cop should know that when someone is subdued and on the ground handcuffed you don't pull a weapon on them.

Like you say The cop made a serious mistake.

there is no excuse for grabbing the wrong gun.second of all he should of new and felt the difference of the gun.this is a mistake that cannot be justified and a price he has to pay for the worst decision a cop can make which is killing someone on accident.there is a real good chance you dont get a second chance.

ah

No this man should face life. What would happen to anyone of us if say for instance we did the same thing?

What i mean to say is this, if a person helps another person commit a crime (say being a get away driver in a robbery), and the person who actually does the crime kills some body arent both just as guilty? Even if the drive is blocks away?

i agree if this was my son i would be in shock etc.

So would all these people who support this murderer, but hey its not my son let some one else worry about it.

Unless you were in the court to hear the evidence firsthand, do not make assumptions. I am not commenting on the sentence until I have all the facts.

Well i googled and i read all the facts that was reported by court room reporters and guess what it does not change my thoughts on it. This cop murdered this man negligent homicide and he should get more than 5 years.

But then again, thank god for prison justice.

The cop was wrong and should have been found guilty of second-degree murder. However, I don't feel sorry for Grant since I keep reading that he was a child rapist and possibly a murder himself. What goes around comes around?

Wrong the man was no such thing, the only thing he has been to prison for was drug dealing, no molester and no rapist. Why smear the man, he was already killed for no reason at all, there must be a special place in hell (if it exist) for people who spread these types of lies.

guilty by association...

I think you may be right. Thats what these people are arguing.

It was an involuntary action.

Bull!

should have any charges against him. When a persons adrenaline is going making a mistake between your handgun or your taser can happen. Why don't we just take all the cops guns away and just give them all a taser? That way all the guns will be owned by the bad guys. Cops are constantly blamed for shooting but especially if it's a white cop shooting a black person. When have you ever heard of a black cop killing a white man causing a riot? People get over using the GD race card. When is this crap going to end. Maybe we shouldn't have cops at all. Lord knows whenever they use their guns it viewed by the public as wrong. Next time you need a cop call your mother or fatherr. Hey maybe you could use a baseball bat to defend yourself from a drive by shooting! What is this country coming to when a cop gets locked up for manslaughter for doing his job. Time for America to wake up and thank the next cop he sees! Police officers put their lives on the line everyday to protect and serve the public whether they are black or white. So stop the constant injustice being served to a white cop shooting a black person. This cop is a fall guy to calm the rioting masses of...? The punishment does not fit this situation. I won't call it a crime ever!! An if you call it a crime that a cop was doing his job you need to get a real life. To every police office, deputy sheriff or any other peace officer reading this "THANK YOU" and stay safe!

So if it was your son, would you feel the same way?

YES! If my son was already in handcuffs and apparently resisting arrest and a police officer accidentally grabbed the wrong gun and shot him even if it was in the back (which means he was trying to flee) I'd give the cop the benefit of the doubt. It should have not been another white cop shoots black youth in back. My son is a law abiding citizen. If he were ever arrested he would never resist or run. They would take responsibility for their actions and not cause guns of any kind to be drawn on them! Why should race be an issue? Isn't time to stop blaming everything on the fact that it's a white against black? I don't consider myself a racist as I treat other people no matter what their skin color or religious beliefs equally!

I said nothing about skin color and you are so full of crap, if it was your son you would do what this mother did. The man was shot in the back, how much of resisting arrest could there be, he was shut while on the ground in handcuffs. I know your only protecting your husband, and that is admirable but you know what, yeah police officers f-up and they do illegal things.

So please do not come on here and act is if you you have no vested interest in this, the officers is guilty of negligent homicide, just as a person who kills some one while driving drunk, they did not mean to do it, hey it just happened. There are people who will spend the rest of the lives in prison for these types of homicides. There are battered women who are in prison for life, who have killed their husbands by accident, and of course you and others like you will say, "hey they knew what they were doing.

So in the end, i did not bring up color, not once you brought it, in fact i bet you would not have brought it up if you had not looked at my picture.

It caused a racial riot! The comments were made as always when a white cop shots a black youth. Every state in this country lately.you hear this over and over. Not once have I heard about a black cop that shot a white kid. And it happens all the time with no riots following, no headlines. I still think the cop should not have criminal charges brought against him. Adrenaline cause cops to react in a split second! The guns are both in holsters and they are extremely similar to each other. I will stand with the police officer and say that it was indeed an accidental discharge from the wrong gun. I also never mentioned anything about my husband but you assumed he must be a cop. The fact is that I was a New York City Police Officer! Been there done that!

Okay name one report in the last two years where a black cop shot a white unarmed man? Second i never one thing about race, you are the one who has race on her mind, i will feel the same way if it was the other around, the cop will get his just deserts in prison. Kind of like child molesters and rapist, he better hope he is put in protective custody. And you dear better pray that this does not happen to one of your children.

Further more what i took offense to is you calling the victim is a scum bag, not once did the report say what they had been arrested for, it could have been a hop over a turn style, or a innocent argument, not once did say why.

But then again being a ex New York city police officer, i would expect nothing less from you. Remember Abner Louima, i bet that was justified also.

You are out of your mind!

sorry for accidental rave, yoju didn't deserve it!