The film depicts the story of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old from Hayward, California, and his experiences on the last day of his life, before he was fatally shot by BART Police in the early morning hours of New Year's Day 2009. The movie begins with the actual footage of Oscar Grant and his friends being detained by the BART Police at the Fruitvale BART station in Oakland on January 1, 2009, at 2:15 a.m. right before the shooting. The film shows Grant and his girlfriend Sophina arguing about Grant's recent infidelity. It later shows Grant unsuccessfully attempting to get his job back at the grocery store. He briefly considers selling some marijuana but in the end, decides to dump the stash. Grant later attends a birthday party for his mother, Wanda, and agrees to take the BART train to see fireworks and other New Year's festivities in San Francisco since she is worried about him driving..