2 Ordered To Pay For Looting After BART Shooting Verdict
OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- Two men arrested on suspicion of looting
after a verdict was announced in the Oscar Grant case have each
been ordered to pay $25,000 to the owner of an Oakland jewelry
store that was robbed, city officials announced Thursday.
Oakland resident Terry Williams, 33, and Gerald Dugas, 20, of Castro Valley were arrested during a July 8 rally in downtown Oakland that turned violent after a jury returned a verdict of involuntary manslaughter against former Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer Johannes Mehserle, who fatally shot an unarmed Grant.
The shooting at the Fruitvale BART station on Jan. 1, 2009 was captured on videotape.
Williams and Dugas were part of a crowd of more than 200 looters that broke through a security gate, kicked in windows and punched a store employee at JC Jewelry at 1940 Broadway before stealing thousands of dollars worth of jewelry, said Alez Katz, a spokesman for the city attorney's office.
Police arrested Williams and Dugas after catching them with gold jewelry from the store owned by Ho Cho, Katz said.
Oakland's Neighborhood Law Corps, a division of the city attorney's office, sued the two men for damages on Oct. 28, 2010.
Alameda County Superior Court Judge Richard Kelley on Wednesday ordered Williams and Dugas to pay $25,000 each in restitution to Ho Cho.
City officials said neither Williams nor Dugas hired an attorney or showed up in court.
"Oakland has a proud tradition of nonviolent protest and dissent," Oakland City Attorney John Russo said. "Those who use protests as nothing more than a cover to trash our town or loot homegrown businesses should consider carefully the court's ruling."
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