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Martinez Man Arrested After Waving Loaded Gun At Black Lives Matter Mural

Mike Miller
/
Martinez News-Gazette
Sanctioned Black Lives Matter street art outside of Contra Costa County courthouse in Martinez

On Sunday night, police in Martinez arrested a local man for brandishing a loaded gun at a group of people gathered near a Black Lives Matter mural.  It’s part of a wave of backlash to the movement sparked by the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

The mural spells out “Black Lives Matter” in bold yellow letters. It was painted on the street in front of the Contra Costa County courthouse by local organizers with permission from the City of Martinez.  

The mural came to national attention after a video of a white couple defacing it went viral amidst a holiday weekend filled with racially charged incidents and speeches. 

In the video, a woman uses a roller and black paint to cover over the mural and says “this is not happening in my town.”  Her companion, wearing a red Trump 2020 T-shirt, calls the mural itself racism and says that stories of police brutality, oppression and racism are a leftist lie. 

The following evening Martinez resident Joseph Osuna drove past the mural and began yelling “all lives matter.” He then got out of his car and waved a gun at an assembled crowd. After he left, law enforcement was notified, and Osuna’s vehicle was stopped a block away. A search of the vehicle turned up a loaded .22 caliber revolver. He was arrested for allegedly possessing a loaded and concealed firearm and taken to Martinez county jail.

Joshua Sirotiak is an environment reporter for KALW in San Francisco. He's a working musician, father and self-proclaimed nerd who has previously produced audio journalism for NBC News and Chicago Public Media.