A Cursory Look at the Johannes Mehserle Trial - ONE

The May 7 hearing for Johannes Mehserle, the former transit cop who killed Oscar Grant on New Year’s Day of 2009, settled several key issues prior to the beginning of the trial scheduled for June 2010. The waters have been somewhat muddied, however, due to much of the media coverage surrounding this case, both before and after the May 7 hearing.

ONE: Did Johannes Mehserle "Shoot" and “Kill” Oscar Grant?



Johannes Mehserle did in fact shoot and kill Oscar Grant. That is not a disputable fact; it is completely true and accurate to state such. 



Every video of the incident that has surfaced thus far shows the undisputable fact that Johannes Mehserle shot Oscar Grant. 



Mehserle’s defense is that he meant to pull his Taser and not his gun when he shot Oscar Grant, but he does not deny shooting Oscar Grant.



Michael Rains, Mehserle’s defense attorney states in his proposed instructional brief to the court that, “There is no doubt that Mehserle fired the shot that killed Grant …”. 



The only doubt seems to exist in the many mainstream media reports of the case.



These many media reports, possibly due to confusion of legal terminology and/or the laws concerning libel, or in furtherance of society’s leanings to give cops the benefit of the doubt, state that Mehserle “allegedly shot” Grant (http://bit.ly/3M0r86, http://bit.ly/bK4Kac, http://bit.ly/9dxlor, http://bit.ly/aO7pjv). 



Mehserle did in fact shoot Grant in the back as Grant lay on his stomach on an Oakland subway platform on January 1, 2009. 



Mehserle’s shooting and killing of Oscar Grant is not an allegation it is undisputable fact. 


What is disputed is whether Mehserle did it on purpose or not. If he did in fact intentionally shoot Oscar Grant that would be murder. 



Mehserle was indicted for murder June 4, 2009 in Alameda County, California, with Superior Court Judge Don Clay ruling that Mehserle should stand trial for murder.



The purpose of the trial, scheduled to begin with jury selection on June 1st, is to determine if Mehserle is indeed guilty of murder. According to the Judicial Council of California Criminal Jury Instructions, effective August 14, 2009 (CALCRIM): 



Homicide is the killing of one human being by another. Murder and manslaughter are type[s] of homicide … If there is no legally valid excuse or justification, the killing is unlawful and, depending on the circumstances, the person is guilty of either murder or manslaughter. 



There are “degrees” to murder namely, first degree or second degree. In order to be convicted of murder in the first degree, “malice aforethought” must be present. 



“Malice aforethought” is defined by West's Encyclopedia of American Law as, “A predetermination to commit an act without legal justification or excuse; a malicious design to injure. An intent, at the time of a killing, willfully to take the life of a human being, or an intent willfully to act in callous and wanton disregard of the consequences to human life; but malice aforethought does not necessarily imply any ill will, spite or hatred towards the individual killed.”



This is what the jury will be deciding in June and until it does, this is what the media should be careful in reporting.