OAKLAND, Calif. (KCBS) -- Oakland police arrested more than 100 people Wednesday after a protest over the fatal shooting of an unarmed man by a BART police officer last week became a riot.
Shop windows were broken, fires set, and three train stations closed as police officers in riot gear used tear gas to control crowds gathered at the Fruitvale Station to protest the death of 22-year-old Oscar Grant.
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The officer who shot Grant, Johannes Mehserle, resigned on the morning of the protest.
The BART police department’s internal investigation has effectively been shut down by Mehserle’s resignation, according to a BART spokesman, since he can no longer be compelled to provide a statement to the transit agency’s investigators.
The Alameda County District Attorney’s office is conducting a separate probe of the New Year's shooting, which was captured by several witnesses on cell phone and video cameras.
Protesters angered by what they call an incident of police brutality set dumpsters on fire and vandalized a police car following a march down International Boulevard.
Fruitvale, Lake Merritt and 12th Street Station in Oakland were closed during the afternoon and evening.
Mehserle has been moved twice by authorities to ensure his safety.
Mayor Ron Dellums said the Oakland Police Department would conduct its own investigation of the fatal shooting.
More protests are likely when BART’s Board of Directors meets at 9 a.m.
(jro)
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