On Wednesday at BART San Francisco, Oscar Grant’s family members revealed the results of their meeting with Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley. According to Grant’s family, Attorney O’Malley guaranteed them a “robust and transparent” investigation regarding the pressed charges against former BART Bay Area Police officer Anthony Pirone in Grant’s 2009 passing.
After their conference with O’Malley, Grant’s family members took to the media on Alameda County Courthouse’s procedures about the case. The family hinted at positive signs during the forum despite the absence of an official statement from the District Attorney’s Office on Wednesday. Cephus Johnson, also known as Grant’s Uncle Bobby, released a statement after the meeting.
“we’re cautiously optimistic about our meeting in the room and investigative aspect of… the journey we’re about to go on in terms of holding Tony Pirone responsible for the murder of Oscar Grant,” said Cephus Johnson, adding, “We’re clear on some of the naysayers’ statements on behind the reopening of the case.”
Grant’s mother, Wanda Johnson, next spoke to the gathered journalists concerning the case.
“I want to start by saying justice delayed is justice denied and that we lack the justice that we deserve for eleven years now,” Wanda Johnson declared. “When Oscar got killed at first, the officer’s actions remain unhidden. The video showed it, and at the time, we should have charged against him,” she added.
Regardless of the ruling restrictions, Grant’s mother stated that the family is still anticipating filed charges against Pirone. According to Grant’s mother, punishment against the officer is absolute if authorities correctly and fairly handle the case.
“I stand today declaring that Oscar did not die in vain,” Grant’s mother mentioned. “He has been a catalyst for this movement. The officer who took part and instigated should be held accountable for his actions,” she added.
Cephus has supplied more affirmations to the situation. He confirmed a promised robust, thorough, and transparent investigation would be happening with the case soon.
“One concern that we’ve had has been the transparency of the established investigation and the communication,” Cephus Johnson declared.
O’Malley announced her office’s reopening of the tragic 2009 BART Police Shooting of Oscar Grant investigation. The case got revived in early October of this year. The October 5th declaration happened after Grant’s family notified the district attorney’s office to revisit the legal process “in the wake of renewed international attention to the murders of Black men, women, children, and most notably, the recent torturous killing of George Floyd.”
In a news release, the Grant family revealed that Officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd beneath his knee in Minneapolis. According to them, BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle used the same technique on Grant seconds before he got lethally shot to his death. Additionally, the family also emphasized that Police Officer Anthony Pirone was the one who “created the climate of violence, pinned Oscar down with a knee to his neck and fracturing bones in Oscar’s face.” This information claims Pirone guilty despite Mehserle pulling the trigger and ending Grant’s life.
Former Oakland City Attorney Jayne Williams and then-attorney Kimberly Colwell wrote a 2009 report on the case about Pirone kneeling Grant’s back and pinning him to the ground. Based on the account, Pirone “started a cascade of events that ultimately led to the shooting of Grant.” The transcript asserted further that “Officer Pirone’s aggressive and unreasonable actions and conduct in violation of policy and acceptable standards contributed substantially to the escalation of the hostile and volatile atmosphere during the incident.”
To date, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office made no official statement on a fixed schedule for the proceeding regarding the charges filed against Pirone.
