Bay Area family joins statewide rally asking CA AG for review of inmate deaths

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Families impacted by police violence gathered in downtown Oakland on Tuesday in what they described as a push to get the California Attorney General Rob Bonta to meet with them in person over the death of a 27-year-old Oakland man who was incarcerated in Los Angeles.

With handmade signs and a huge scroll filled with 1,200 signatures, Jalani Lovett's mother and sister are still seeking justice after the 27-year-old died in solitary confinement in an L.A. County jail cell four years ago. The coroner's office said the cause of death was a drug overdose. But Lovett's mother blames the deputies and guards in the jail where she says dozens of inmates are dying.

MORE: Man incarcerated at Santa Clara County jail nearly beaten to death; 3 charged

"My son was in a one-man cell away from other inmates. They said he was an OD victim. When we got pictures of my son's body, his arm was pulled out of the socket," said Lovett.

"I figure if we make enough noise, then people start listening and bring some awareness to what's going on. It's not just us," said Lovett's sister Yvette Martin.

Local justice groups and unions are backing the families who believe their loved ones died in custody because of police violence - their goal is to talk to Bonta.

"I'm asking the attorney general to sit down with me and my family and to go over the evidence I have uncovered," said Lovett.

"We are targeting AG Bonta. He ran on a platform of accountability, so we want to pressure him to specifically investigate killer cops and to actually prosecute cops who are involved," said Jennifer Lin with the Oakland Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

MORE: Alameda Co. court approves charges against 9 deputies, 2 medical staff in 2021 in-custody death

Similar rallies took place at other state offices in San Diego and Los Angeles, as well as in Oakland, with families making demands on California's attorney general.

Bonta's office did not respond to a request for comment on the rallies. So Lovett's family members swept into the state building with their 51 pages of signatures. They went up to the floor where Bonta's office is located, but no one was behind the reception desk. So they unfurled the scroll and left it behind.

"When they come, I want them to see this and hopefully they'll give it to their boss and hopefully he'll do his job," said Lovett.