OAKLAND, Calif. — The uncle of an unarmed man fatally shot by a former transit police officer has harsh words to describe a letter of apology from the officer.
Speaking outside an Oakland church Saturday night, Oscar Grant's uncle, Cephus Johnson, rejected the letter released Friday, terming it a "ploy."
Johnson said he and the Grant family didn't believe the words in Johannes Mehserle's handwritten note, saying it's an attempt at gaining the judge's sympathy before sentencing.
Mehserle was convicted of involuntary manslaughter by a Los Angeles jury Thursday for the 2009 fatal shooting of the 22-year-old Grant on a train platform in Oakland. The conviction on a lesser charge sparked violent protests.
A call to Mehserle's attorney seeking comment was not immediately returned.
