Grant Family -- It Is Time to Move On!!!!!

In the aftermath of the Johannes Mesherle verdict of Involuntary Manslaughter for the death of Oscar Grant on January 1, 2009, the attorney for Mesherle released a letter from Mesherle that he wrote on July 4, 2010 apologizing to the family of Oscar Grant.  We are publishing the letter in full here:

Mike [Rains -- Mehserle's attorney] -

Please try to get this message to the public:

I don't know what the jury in this case is going to decide, but I hope those who hate me and those who understand that I never intended to shoot Oscar Grant will listen to this message.

I have and will continue to live everyday of my life knowing that Mr. Grant should not have been shot. I know a daughter has lost a father and a mother has lost a son. It saddens me knowing that my actions cost Mr. Grant his life, no words express how truly sorry I am.

I hoped to talk to Ms. Johnson (Wanda Johnson, Grant's mother) and Ms. Mesa (Sophina Mesa, Grant's girlfriend and the mother of his daughter) in the days following this terrible event, but death threats toward my newly-born son, my friends and family resulted in no communication occurring. I hope the day will come when anger will give way to a dialogue.

For now, and forever I will live, breathe, sleep, and not sleep with the memory of Mr. Grant screaming "You shot me" and putting my hands on the bullet wound thinking the pressure would help while I kept telling him "You'll be okay." I tried to tell myself that maybe this shot would not be so serious, but I recall how sick I felt when Mr. Grant stopped talking, closed his eyes and seemed to change his breathing.

I don't expect that I can ever convince some individuals how sorry I am for the death of Mr. Grant, but I would not feel right if I didn't explain my thoughts as I wait for a decision of the jury.

Johannes Mehserle
7-4-2010

Reaction was swift to this letter. According to the San Francisco Chronicle:

Cephus "Bobby" Johnson, Grant's uncle, said that if Mehserle had written the letter the day after the killing and given it to the family, it would have carried more weight.

Now, he said, it amounts to "a convict pleading for mercy."

"This is the first time we are hearing all of this," Johnson said. "From the first, we had been condemned by his father who said that we were all trying to capitalize off his death. That told us that there was no sincerity in his heart or his son's heart about what happened to Oscar. Here we were, being crucified for seeking justice. We hadn't done anything wrong."

John Burris, an attorney who represents Grant's family, said he considered the letter and Mehserle's apology to be of "no consequence."

"From our point of view, it would be more appropriate and better received if he had said he was sorry at the very moment he looked in his (Grant's) eyes after the shooting," Burris said. "He should have said, 'Sorry, it was a mistake and I didn't mean it.'"

Tony Coleman, spokesman for the Coalition for Justice for Oscar Grant, said, "If you really want to say 'sorry' to somebody, you can arrange that. There is no excuse not to apologize immediately. This doesn't have much value, right now, because you are saying it because the system is holding you accountable and you want leniency, as opposed to being genuinely sorry."

Now The Shadow will give his reaction to this letter and the reaction from the Grant Family:

The letter not very well timed.  Why was this letter issued during the time that the jury was in deliberations?  however, despite the timing, The Shadow felt that -- based on the testimony during the trial -- that the apology is genuine.  As we have noted, we will not comment on the fact of the case now that a jury has decided a verdict.

The Shadow also believes that the Grant Family's reaction to this letter was uncalled for.  We are sure that this was not an easy letter to write and it is also not easy for a mother who has lost a son to receive it and not believe it's sincerity.  But it also seems like the Grant Family has been on a witchhunt since this process began.  We think that it is important that Mehserle has at least offered an apology to the family.  Most criminals will not even do that.

It is true that the timing of the letter indicates that maybe Mehserle is looking for leniency when he is sentenced later this year.  That may still happen.  But it is also important that a dialogue is opened between the Grant Family 9who is black) and Mehserle (who is white).  There is no reason to not talk and at least come to an understanding as to what happened.  The Grant Family -- and their attorney John Burris -- needs to come off of their high horse and at least listen to Mehserle.  To just turn a blind eye to this attempt at an apology does nothing to the memory of Oscar Grant and just reimforces the racial stereotypes that exist in America.

The Shadow would urge both sides to come together before sentencing and at least talk.  We are not asking the Grant Family to reconsider their opinion.  Just talk.

Good night and good luck.