Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Former Officer Johannes Mehserle Charged with Killing Unarmed Man

The former transit officer charged in the killing of an unarmed man on an Oakland train station platform is scheduled to appear in a Los Angeles court next month.

Johannes Mehserle nodded and indicated he understood when Alameda County Superior Court Judge Morris Jacobson told him during a brief hearing Tuesday that his next hearing was set for Jan. 8 in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

The judge had ruled in October the trial should be moved out of Oakland because of excessive media coverage and racial tensions.

Mehserle is charged with the murder of 22-year-old Oscar Grant on a Bay Area Rapid Transit station platform on New Year's Day.

Attorneys for the 27-year-old Mehserle say he mistakenly pulled out his Taser instead of his handgun.

Mehserle has pleaded not guilty.

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