BART spent $6 million after Grant shooting

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BART has spent money on police overtime for investigating the killing of Oscar Grant and dealing with repeated protests. Creative Commons photo by Flickr user The Black Hour.

Bay Area Rapid Transit has spent more than $6 million on expenses related to the shooting death of Oscar Grant by former BART police officer Johannes Mehserle, according to public records released Wednesday.

BART released the documents to the San Francisco Chronicle in response to a public records request.

The records detail some of the costs incurred in the aftermath of the shooting. BART paid $1.5 million to Grant’s 6-year-old daughter, Tatiana, in a settlement. The agency has spent more than $500,000 in attorney fees related to the handling of that case and other lawsuits still pending. Overtime and special pay for officers who investigated the killing or were working at protests after the incident have cost the agency $1.4 million.

More than $800,000 has been spent on additional training for officers, including riot handling, defensive tactics and the use of Tasers. More than $1 million was spent on putting six officers who were with Mehserle when the shooting occurred on paid leave during the investigations into the shooting. Two officers were fired after the investigation was concluded, costing $75,000.

BART spokesman Linton Johnson told the Contra Costa Times that the large amount of money spent showed BART was serious about analyzing and improving its police force.

CBS5 reported that Grant’s uncle, Cephus Johnson, said more money could have been “spent up front” on proper training.

Mehserle will be sentenced, following his conviction for involuntary manslaughter, on Nov. 5.

The costs of the Oscar Grant shooting damage control are as follows:

  • $1.5 million in a civil settlement for Grant’s six-year-old daughter, Tatiana.
  • $553,000 on attorneys handling the settlement and various civil rights law suits pending in federal court.
  • $1.4 million for overtime and special pay for officers investigating the case or keeping the peace at protests after the incident.
  • $800,000 for additional officer training that includes defense tactics, riot control and the use of Tasers.
  • More than $1 million to pay and cover for the leave of the six officers who were with Mehserle when he shot Grant.
  • $75,000 for the process of firing two of the officers, Anthony Pirone and Marysol Domenici.
  • $283,000 for an outside law firm that recommended the firings of Pirone and Domenici.
  • $135,000 for an auditing group that would change how BART hires, trains and disciplines officers.
  • $140,000 for rented buses, riot gear and other equipment.
  • $12,000 for the trauma councilors who helped BART employees after the incident.

BART spokesman Linton Johnson told the Chronicle: “No amount of money is going to bring Oscar Grant back — that’s stating the obvious. But what we can do is learn from a tragedy and try to improve our police services.”

Erin Dage contributed to this report.

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