Author Archives: j4ab

Oakland Police Officer-Involved Shooting of Alan Blueford Raises Questions

Posted on July 26, 2012 | Comments Off

The family of Blueford, who was shot and killed by an Oakland police officer, files a federal lawsuit.

By Ali Winston

Oakland is once again in an uproar over a fatal police shooting of an African-American man. In 2007, it was Gary King Jr. In 2009, it was Oscar Grant. In 2010, it was Derrick Jones. In 2011, it was Raheim Brown. This year, it’s Alan Dwayne Blueford. The eighteen-year-old Skyline High student was shot and killed on May 6 at 92nd Avenue and Birch Street after fleeing a stop by two Oakland police officers, just weeks before his graduation.

The shooting doesn’t just mark another incident in the Oakland Police Department’s history of killing unarmed suspects, especially young black men, but it also raises questions about the department’s vetting process. The officer involved had been accused of excessive force before, while working for the New York Police Department.

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Alan Blueford Would Have Graduated High School in June

Posted on July 26, 2012 | Comments Off

By Dady Chery
Haiti Chery

Eighteen-year old high-school senior and Oakland resident Alan Blueford was shot to death by police on May 6 under curious circumstances. The policeman who killed Blueford was also shot, but the origin of this officer’s wounds, his type of injury, and even his name were initially shielded by the California Police Officers’ Bill of Rights as numerous versions of the incident were disseminated from the police to the press.

According to Alan’s father Adam Blueford:

“When they told me my son had exchanged gunfire, I knew it wasn’t Alan they were talking about…. I’ve heard so many stories since then that I couldn’t believe and now I want the truth.”

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Alan Blueford Tribute

Posted on July 23, 2012 | Comments Off

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Justice 4 Alan Blueford by Yoyo

Posted on July 21, 2012 | Comments Off

Performed by Alan Blueford’s cousin Yolanda Wilkes, aka Yoyo

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Press Release: Blueford family demands coroner’s report

Posted on July 20, 2012 | 1 comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 19, 2012

FAMILY AND SUPPORTERS GATHER TO DEMAND JUSTICE 4 ALAN BLUEFORD, INCLUDING RELEASE OF POLICE AND CORONER’S REPORTS

Family members of Alan Blueford, a 18-year-old Skyline High student who was shot and killed by Oakland police on May 6, gathered at the Alameda County Coroner’s Office to demand justice and accountability from the city.

Joined by members of clergy, SEIU 1021, ILWU, Occupy Oakland, Dignity & Resistance, International Socialist Organization and other residents who support their call for justice, they demanded the release of the Police and Coroner’s reports on Alan and the firing and prosecution of Miguel Masso, the police officer who killed him.

The family is also demanding that Police Chief Howard Jordan and other members of OPD be held accountable for the multiple lies they have spread both to the press and to the family directly related to the circumstances surrounding Alan’s death and the medical care he supposedly received.

“When they told me my son had exchanged gunfire, I knew it wasn’t Alan they were talking about,” said Adam Blueford, Alan’s father. “I’ve heard so many stories since then that I couldn’t believe and now I want the truth.”

The Justice 4 Alan Blueford campaign is also seeking to change laws that enable police brutality in Oakland and elsewhere, including stop-and-frisk–which may not be a formal policy but is a regular tactic used by police nonetheless–and repealing the Police Officers’ Bill of Rights. They are also looking to expose the lack of accountable at all levels of the OPD.

“The Oakland Police Department is making an unprecedented effort to suppress information about Alan Blueford’s death,” said Dan Siegel, formal legal adviser to Mayor Jean Quan and a supporter of the Justice 4 Alan Blueford campaign. “We know they have a lot to hide, and it will eventually come to light.”

Upcoming actions in the campaign include a community BBQ at Arroyo Park in Oakland on Saturday, July 21, from 1pm – 4pm, as well as a rally at 14th and Broadway at 5pm on Tuesday, July 31.

For more info, see http://www.justice4alanblueford.org.

UPDATE: After the press conference, the coroner’s report was made available to the family. It revealed that Alan did not have any drugs or alcohol in his system and there was no gunshot residue found on either hand.

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“I Am The Mother of Murder Victim Alan Blueford.”

Posted on July 20, 2012 | 1 comment

by J.P. Massar

Originally posted at Daily Kos

Yesterday morning, July 19th, 2012, Alan Blueford’s mother, father and niece, and their attorneys Dan Siegal and Walter Riley, spoke at a press conference held on the steps of the Alameda County Coroner’s office. They decried the murder of 18 year-old Alan Blueford by Oakland Police Officer Miguel Masso on May 6th, 2012. In support at the press conference were friends of the family, numerous Occupy Oaklanders and other activists who seek Justice 4 Alan Blueford.

The family had been stonewalled about the entire case by the City Administration after testifying at a City Council meeting several weeks ago, despite pledges of support by at least one City Council member. The issue at hand was the refusal by the Coroner’s office to release the autopsy report on Blueford’s death, which the Coroner reported had had a “hold” placed on it at the request of the Oakland Police Department. Only after intense pressure over the course of the last month culminating in this press conference was the family able to obtain a copy of the report — after being forced to pay $326 in “fees”. The report was finally issued in the afternoon after the press conference had ended.

… the family couldn’t get the report until it paid a total of $326 in fees, an amount he said is the standard cost for autopsy fees. ((Sheriff’s spokesman)) Kelly said the coroner’s bureau sometimes waives the fees for families of homicide victims but Blueford isn’t considered to be a homicide victim because Oakland police believe that shooting him was a justifiable use of deadly force.