Porter was the first of six Baltimore police officers to go on trial on charges associated with Gray’s police in-custody death.
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Prosecutors will now consider whether, how and when to retry Porter in connection with Gray’s death.
Caesar R. Goodson Jr.is charged with one count of second-degree depraved-heart murder, involuntary manslaughter, second-degree assault, manslaughter by vehicle (gross negligence), manslaughter by vehicle (criminal negligence), misconduct in office and reckless endangerment.
He died of his injuries several days later, sparking protests, looting and arson, and more intense debate about police use of deadly force, particularly in its dealing with black men or youths.
The lawyers were seen Thursday morning at Circuit Judge Barry Williams’ chambers.
The decision comes on Wednesday just three days after the jury failed to reach a guilty verdict. It sheds light as to when the victim’s injury occurred and whether there was anything Porter could have done to save Gray.
One group repeated the “Serenity Prayer” as demonstrators moved through the streets. Baltimore police officers were assigned to 12-hour shifts to ensure the department is fully staffed. At least two demonstrators were arrested. Television footage showed Baltimore sheriff’s deputies taking Kwame Rose into custody, putting his arms behind his back and marching him into the courthouse. “We are confident there will be another trial with a new jury”. The mistrial will likely complicate prosecutors’ plans, and as such, their strategy moving forward.
Baltimore mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and the new police commissioner she installed after April’s riots warned people against more violence.
Rick Ritter with protesters having a peaceful demonstration.
“As much respect as I have for police, in this case Freddie is dead, and it didn’t have to be that way”, Hill-Aston said. The Baltimore NAACP echoed that call in its own statement, asking for “frustration and anger to be controlled and the rights of all people respected, on all sides”.
Porter, who shared the same neighborhood with Gray while growing up, said in his defense that Gray was “unable to give me a reason for a medical emergency”. A female supporter joined Porter on a bench in a corner of the hallway.
A defense attorney wouldn’t comment about the mistrial, saying he was subject to a court gag order. “I think the state’s attorney went in there with the intention of losing”, Davis said.
The latest on the mistrial for a Baltimore police officer charged with manslaughter in the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who was injured in the back of a police transport van (all times local). The autopsy concluded that he probably couldn’t brace himself whenever the van turned a corner or braked suddenly.
“We are hopeful that [Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn] Mosby will retry Officer Porter as soon as possible, and that his next jury will reach a verdict”.
Five other officers are still set to stand trial in connection with Gray’s death. The other three officers are white.
His death on April 19 became a symbol of the tension between the black community and Baltimore cops and put his case at the center of the Black Lives Matter movement.
The jury began its deliberations shortly after 2:30 p.m. on Monday, and on Tuesday announced it was deadlocked. He was sentenced to a year of home detention.
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During Monday’s closing arguments, prosecutor Janice Bledsoe argued that any officer in Porter’s situation would have called for medical assistance once Gray complained.
