Legal Updates

As of now, there are still about 5 arraignment dates, one of which is today, 9am.

As of now, 3 misdemeanors have been filed, 4 felonies have been filed and 2 warrant letters with no court date have been sent.

For clarification: The majority of cases have not been dismissed or “dropped”. What is happening is that the DA is choosing not to file complaints at this time. He has a year to do so. Some folks who had no complaints filed have received warrant letters, which means that the DA intends to file a complaint of some sort. There are two generally two types of warrant letters;
one says you have to surrender yourself immediately and comes with a court date (and is likely a misdemeanor); The other states intent to press charges but does not specify a court date (and is likely a felony). We are advising people to immediately get in touch with the National Lawyers Guild either way, so they can pair them together with a lawyer. If they can’t hook up with NLG, they should find a Public Defender ASAP.

Important information:

One of the attorneys is planning on sending a letter demanding that all confiscated property, including media, be returned and that all data copied be destroyed. If the letter doesn’t work, there will likely be some type of court action.

She is also looking to speak with anyone who witnessed or was injured by the flash-bang grenades lobbed on the 30th.

Another attorney is searching for folks who were arrested on felonies and had DNA collected during any of the demos. He is demanding that all DNA collected be destroyed.

In general, what is happening right now is complicated. It is likely that we will continue to see a trickle of court related activity for the next month, at least. One of the attorneys noted that while fewer people have been arrested than at other mass demos in Oakland and SF, the charges have been slightly more severe.

Anyone who has information related to the Oakland Rebellion or who would like to assist in legal assistance can email the Oakland 100 Support Committee at oakland100[at]gmail.com

Court Support is also needed on these dates:
February 11th, 13th, 17th, 23rd, 5th – 9am, 661 Washington Street, Oakland

Stop OPD from passing Oakland youth curfew

Stop OPD from passing Oakland youth curfew! Tues 2/10 @ 530 City Hall (1 Frank Ogawa Plaza), Rm 1

A youth curfew will be passed in Oakland if we do not fight it NOW. This means that OPD will question and detain any young person for violating curfew w/out exception. This will apply to all youth under 18 years of age on City streets between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. (Sunday through Thursday) and 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. (as a component of the Oakland Police Department’s “strategic plan”).

Charges Delayed for 28 Misdemeanors Related to Oscar Grant Rebellion

Over 130 people have been arrested in connection with protests surrounding the murder of Oscar Grant III. This morning, the first arraignments were to be held for over 30 people charged with misdemeanors and felonies at the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in Oakland. Charges for 28 individuals charged with misdemeanors were delayed, meaning that District Attorney Tom Orloff has up to one year to file charges. One person with a misdemeanor and two people with felonies are still facing their charges in court. The next arraignments for those arrested in connection with the Oscar Grant Rebellion are February 9th, 13th, and 17th. The Oakland 100 Support Committee requests that supporters keep the pressure on until all charges are dropped.

Support the Oakland 100! Support Resistance!

During the month of January, more than 130 people have been arrested in Oakland during operations aimed at containing and suppressing outrage over the New Year’s morning execution of Oscar Grant III by BART police and the systemic injustices and abuses communities in Oakland continually face. Many arrestees are young people of color and many were caught in mass police sweeps of public areas. They now face charges ranging from misdemeanor rioting to various felonies. On February 6 and 9, the majority of those caught in these mass arrests will have their initial hearings at the Alameda courthouse and members of the community will be mobilizing in a show of support to demand that all charges be dropped.

The Oakland 100 Support Committee or O100, a recently formed group dedicated to supporting those facing charges stemming from the January demonstrations against police violence, will be working with members of the National Lawyers’ Guild, and Critical Resistance to connect arrestees with legal resources and to put pressure on Mayor Dellums and DA Orloff to drop all related charges. O100 is organizing a visible presence in front of the courthouse from 8:30am to 5:00pm on both the 6 and the 9 and will staff a legal resources table to assist arrestees. Folks are encouraged to come and show their support by bringing banners and signs and participating in the presence in front of the courthouse or by helping to fill the courtrooms in a non disruptive show of solidarity. O100 is asking that people dress in all black as a silent statement of support for those arrested.

“DA Orloff has made his priorities clear by dragging his feet when it came to charging a cop who executed an unarmed man on camera and then turning around and rapidly leveling charges against those involved in the demonstrations” said Inez Sunwoo, a member of O100 and Critical Resistance. “For the DA and the entire government and police establishment in Oakland, the lives of young people of color are worth less than some broken windows. This is exactly why people are angry and protesting”.

Isaac Ontiveros a member of Critical Resistance and the Plan for a Safer Oakland sees the charges stemming from the January demonstrations as part of a larger systemic problem. “We know that further criminalizing these young people does nothing to make the streets of Oakland safer and does not address the real underlying problems that have created so much outrage. It is because of this systemic criminalization at the hands of police that Oscar Grant was murdered in the first place and we need to stop this violent cycle now.”

• Oakland 100 Support Committee
O100 is an all-volunteer group dedicated to connecting those facing charges with legal support, participating in a ‘Drop the Charges’ campaign, raising funds to assist arrestees and standing in solidarity with the larger movement against police violence. The group is composed of community members, arrestees, and allies.
oakland100 [at] gmail.com

• Critical Resistance
CR is a national grassroots organizations committed to ending society’s use of prisons and policing as an answer to social problems.
http://www.criticalresistance.org

• National Lawyer’s Guild San Francisco
Dedicated to the need for basic change in the structure of our political and economic system, we seek to unite the lawyers, law students, legal workers and jailhouse lawyers of America, to function as an effective political and social force in the service of the people, to the end that human rights shall be regarded as more sacred than property interests.

National Lawyers Guild SF