Bay Area Rapid Transit Police Department
| Bay Area Rapid Transit District Police Department | |
|---|---|
 Current patch of the BART Police Department | |
.png) Former patch of the BART Police Department | |
| Common name | BART Police |
| Abbreviation | BARTPD |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1972 |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction | California, United States |
| Size | 2,667.49 sq mi (6,908.8 km2) (land area in 4 counties) |
| Population | 4,082,982 (4 county area) |
| Legal jurisdiction | San Francisco Bay Area, California |
| Governing body | BARTD |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Officers | 206 |
| Unsworn members | 90 |
| Agency executive |
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| Divisions | 5 |
| Facilities | |
| Stations | 50 |
| Website | |
| www.BART.gov | |
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In 2009, officer Johannes Mehserle fatally shot Oscar Grant III on the Fruitvale station.[4][5] Eyewitnesses gathered direct evidence of the shooting with cellular video cameras which were later submitted to social networks such as YouTube in addition to media outlets. The videos were watched hundreds of thousands of times online.[6] In the days following the shooting, peaceful and violent demonstrations occurred.[7] After an investigation and public uproar, Mehserle was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, to which he pleaded not guilty. He was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2010 and was sentenced to two years. Mehserle served his sentence at the Los Angeles County Jail and was released in 2011 on parole.[8] Subsequent to the criminal trial Oakland civil rights attorney John Burris filed a US$25 million wrongful death civil lawsuit against BART on behalf of Grant's daughter and girlfriend. In response to the Grant shooting, BART created a civilian oversight committee to monitor police-related incidents. The civilian oversight of the BART Police Department is directly attributable to the leadership of Assemblyman Sandre Swanson who authored the legislation, BART director Carole Ward Allen who lobbied members of the California state legislature to create an oversight committee with an Independent Auditor position, and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger who signed the bill into law.[9] Charles Hill[edit]In 2011, a mentally ill homeless man, Charles Blair Hill, assaulted two officers with weapons at the Civic Center / UN Plaza station in San Francisco. As a result, he was shot by BART police. The department reported that Hill was drunk and armed with two knives and a broken bottle. Approximately twenty-three seconds after arriving on scene, the officers fired three rounds, striking Hill in the chest and killing him. BART Police chief Kenton Rainey stated lethal force was appropriate. The shooting of Charles Hill led to a non-violent but disruptive demonstration by approximately seventy-five protesters inside the Civic Center and 16th Street Stations on July 11.[10] Demonstrators departing the 16th St Mission station returned downtown on Mission St, blocking traffic and engaging in acts of vandalism en route.[10] One citizen was arrested for intoxication.[11] Sahleem Tindle[edit]Officer Joseph Mateu shot and killed Sahleem Tindle in January 2018. Officer Mateu had heard shots, and ran to the scene where two men were fighting over a gun. He intervened, firing into Tindle's back three times. The shooting resulted in a civil rights lawsuit against BART. Prosecutors wound up declining to file any charges.[12] Cell phone network shutdown[edit]On August 11, 2011, BART officials successfully prevented another evening-commute anti-police demonstration by shutting down the public cell phone network serving their jurisdiction in and between the downtown San Francisco stations.[13] The police had received information that the protest was to be coordinated live via internet and text messages. This was the first documented instance of any government agency in the United States shutting down public communications to disrupt a protest.[14] The American Civil Liberties Union called the decision "in effect an effort by a governmental entity to silence its critics."[15] Operations[edit] The BART police have various positions in their ranks. including peace officers, community service officers, dispatchers, revenue protection guards, and administrative staff. Most officers are assigned to patrol, and others are assigned to special operations teams.  The department's decentralized patrol bureau is divided into six police zones. Each has its own headquarters and field office(s). The police department has: criminal investigation, personnel and training, record, warrant, crime analysis, traffic administration, property and evidence, and revenue protection divisions. There is also the office of the chief which is composed of an internal affairs and a budget coordination office. Further specialties for the police department include: field training officer, K9, background investigations, crime analyst, administrative traffic officer, FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) investigator, special-enforcement teams, recruiting and personnel, and crisis intervention teams. The agency has police facilities in: Castro Valley, Daly City, Concord, El Cerrito, Hayward, Oakland, Pittsburg, Pleasanton, San Bruno, San Francisco, San Leandro, Fremont, San Jose, and Walnut Creek. Fallen officer[edit]One BART police officer has died in the line of duty.
See also[edit]References[edit]
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