Johannes Mehserle Sentencing: Two Years

Johannes Mehserle, the Oakland transit officer who fatally shot an unarmed man on the city's BART system almost two years ago, was given a two-year prison sentence today. The verdict, which is the minimum sentence, was viewed as an outrage to the family of his victim, Oscar Grant, and much of the city's community. Mehserle, who is white, shot Grant, who was black, in the back while restraining him on a train platform; the incident was caught on video. Mehserle claimed he intended to use his Taser. In the aftermath of the sentencing, some Oakland businesses shut down and hundreds of objectors gathered downtown.