California’s attorney general announced that his office will conduct its own investigation of a transit officer’s involvement in the 2009 fatal shooting of Oscar Grant.
via: The Root
On Tuesday, California’s Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that his office will conduct a review of former transit officer Anthony Pirone’s involvement in the shooting death of Oscar Grant back in 2009. According to the Associated Press, this decision came after Alameda County’s district attorney, Nancy O’Malley, decided not to charge Pirone for murder back in January.
The Root reported about the case being reopened by O’Malley last October:
“We will evaluate the evidence and the law, including the applicable law at the time and the statute of limitations, and make a determination,” said O’Malley. The announcement came after Grant’s family and members of the Oakland community called for Oscar’s case to be reopened, following a 2019 report showing another BART officer was responsible for escalating the situation that led to Grant’s death.
That officer was Anthony Pirone. On New Year’s Day in 2009, 22-year-old Grant was face down on the ground when officer Johannes Mehserle shot him in the back. Mehserle said later that he thought he had pulled out his stun gun.
In January, just after the 11th anniversary of Grant’s death, O’Malley decided not to charge Pirone with murder for his involvement in the shooting.
Grant’s family reportedly has spent years seeking criminal charges against Pirone. After O’Malley’s decision they petitioned Bonta’s office which agreed to its own independent review.
In 2010, Mehserle was sentenced to two years in prison, but was released after only serving 11 months. Grant’s tragic death was later portrayed on the big screen in Ryan Coogler’s 2013 film Fruitvale Station.
