Opinion ID: 2588509
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The Taxicab Shooting

Text: Austin Williams, a Nigerian emigre, worked for the same taxicab company as Daniel McDermott. On October 17, 1990, both drivers were lined up at a taxi stand on 13th Street near Broadway in Oakland. A man and a woman walked hurriedly toward Mr. Williams's taxi; the man went to the front passenger door and the woman went to the rear passenger door. The man was wearing a brown jacket, and the woman was wearing a multicolored dress that had diamond shapes in its pattern. She also had a scar on her face. Williams informed the couple that his was not the next taxi available. The couple then entered McDermott's taxi, which drove them away from the stand. Susan Yi was living at her parents' home on Eagle Avenue in Alameda. At approximately 8:30 p.m. that night an automobile drove up that she thought might be her father's car but was a yellow taxicab. She saw a Black male standing outside the front passenger door, leaning in, as if paying the driver. The man was yelling at a woman, who Yi saw walk away from the taxi. She was Black, heavyset, and wore a multicolored dress. The couple appeared to be boyfriend and girlfriend. A couple of minutes later Yi heard what sounded like firecrackers, except louder, coming from the area where the taxicab was parked. She then heard the skid of tires backing up real fast, and she saw the taxi was moving in reverse very fast. Robin Menefee had been defendant's girlfriend for about a year. As of October 17, they were living together in the park under a train. Defendant had a .38-caliber gun that he had possessed for a couple of days. That evening, neither had money, so they panhandled, and then bought beer and wine. As Menefee sat on a platform near Lake Merritt, defendant told her to stay there and wait for him. He returned 30 to 60 minutes later and told her that he had shot two people. He acted like his normal self. Menefee accompanied defendant to a taxi stand at 13th and Broadway because she was scared that defendant would shoot her too if she left him. Defendant and Menefee attempted to enter one taxi, but the driver, who had an African accent, told them he was not moving. They then entered McDermott's taxi, with Menefee sitting in back and defendant sitting in front. Defendant and McDermott discussed the World Series game that was being broadeast on the radio at the time. McDermott drove them to a parking lot near Eagle Avenue, where defendant's grandmother lived. Neither defendant nor Menefee had any money to pay for the ride. When the taxi stopped, defendant told Menefee to leave the taxi. She went into an alley to urinate. She heard a gunshot coming from where the taxi was parked. Defendant ran toward Menefee and told her that he had shot the driver. Defendant continued to act normally. The taxi's horn began honking. The couple knocked on the door of defendant's grandmother's home, but no one answered. They then hid under an apartment house for about 25 minutes, after which the couple walked to a store and defendant bought some groceries. As they later sat waiting for a bus, police arrested defendant. Menefee has a scar on her cheek. The autopsy on McDermott revealed he had no injuries indicating any kind of struggle. The cause of death was a bullet wound to the face. It was McDermott's long-standing habit to bring five $1 bills to work so he could make change. Defendant had seven $1 bills and 43 cents on his person at the time of his arrest; 75 cents but no paper currency was found on McDermott's body. No money was found in the taxi. Sergeant Mark Landes brought Austin Williams to where defendant was being detained to see whether Williams could identify him. Williams told Sergeant Landes that defendant looked very similar to the man who attempted to enter his taxi, but he could not be certain. He noted the defendant's skin color and complexion were the same as that of his would-be passenger, and the hairstyle was also very similar, but Williams had not had a good enough look at the man to make a positive identification. Sergeant Landes retrieved a jacket from the alley near the home of defendant's grandmother. Defendant refused to put on the jacket in court to determine whether it fit. The court instructed the jury it could consider that refusal as reflecting a consciousness of guilt.