Last Thursday, on New Year's Day, 22-year-old Oscar Grant was fatally shot by an unidentified BART officer. It happened after grant and some buddies got into a scuffle while riding a train. We know this. What we don't know yet is why. Was it an accident? Was it intentional? An answer to that is in the works thanks to a sharp bystander who captured what went down on her cell phone
Karina Vargas screened the footage on KTVU last night. The footage is a bit disturbing since you hear and, more or less, see Grant, who was unarmed, get shot. Although reports are conflicting, it appears Grant was in fact cuffed at the time he was shot; he was definitely pressed to the ground by the officer.
According to the Gate, "BART is looking into a number of issues, including whether the officer had meant to fire his Taser stun gun rather than his gun." Bay Area Rapid Transit Police Chief Gary Gee has asked the public and media for patience as the investigations progresses. "This case is not even four days cold. We're in the early stages of the investigation and we will do a very thorough job," he warns.
Grant, by the way, was a meat cutter at Farmer Joe's Marketplace and a new father who "loved to play basketball and video games and hang out with friends." His family plans on filing a $25 million claim against BART.