Oakland police ready for verdict in Ferguson shooting death

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ByVic Lee KGO logo
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Oakland police ready for protest sparked by verdict in Ferguson shooting death
The grand jury decision in the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri is expected any day and it could touch off a firestorm of anger around the Bay Area and the country.

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- The grand jury decision in the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri could touch off a firestorm of anger around the Bay Area and the country and authorities are getting ready for the verdict.

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan says her city is prepared for protests following the grand jury decision on the Ferguson shooting death. That decision is expected any day now. Protestors say they're ready to speak out loudly.

Organizers for the big solidarity demonstration say they will speak loud and clear at Frank Ogawa Plaza, at the so-called Oscar Grant corner of 14th Street and Broadway.

"We are saying when the decision comes down regardless of what the decision is people should be out in the streets," D'Andre Teeter of Stop Mass Incarceration Network said. "There should be no business as usual in the country."

D'Andre teeter is an organizer of the upcoming demonstration. He doesn't want violence but he says people are angry.

"I'm not going to go out and encourage people to be violent, but at the same time, people are going to be outraged and it's up to the police what they want to do," Teeter added,

Quan said the protesters have nothing to fear from police officers.

"More and more people know who their community police officer is," Quan said. "We haven't had an officer-involved shooting for over 17 months. We can't find a time when we've gone over a year before."

In August, four separate marches converged into one massive rally in Downtown Oakland. Hundreds took to the streets to stand in solidarity with protestors in Ferguson, Missouri. For the most part, the large gathering was peaceful.

Extra police will be on call, Quan added.

Mayor Jean Quan believes that when the Grand Jury decision comes down, the police force will be able to keep the protests peaceful, unlike what happened during the Occupy demonstrations.

"The massive retraining of our police force made them more effective on demonstrations," Quans said. "We're really determined to let people speak as well as keep the peace in our city."

Protestors say the time is ripe for their efforts to blossom into a lasting, national movement. They want their message to be forceful and unrelenting.