Officer William Porter’s December trial was declared a mistrial. “Everything my client did was professional, correct, appropriate, and most of all reasonable”, he said told Judge Williams in his closing argument.
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Prosecutors had argued Gray was assaulted and the instrument of the assault was the police van.
Judge Williams said Monday that prosecution had failed to prove Rice had acted in a grossly negligent or corrupt manner. Will she still move ahead, spending city resources and tying up the courts to attempt to prosecute the two remaining officers?
The state went to great lengths to show Rice was aware of department seatbelt policies and choose to ignore them-which is where his culpability lies.
Gray’s death sparked protests and some riots in Baltimore. The officer helped put Gray, who was shackled and handcuffed, into the police wagon face down on its floor.
Multiple medical experts were called upon during Rice’s trial, and Dr. Matthew Ammerman stated that Freddie Gray died shortly before the police van made its final stop. His death prompted protests and violent riots a year ago. It was alleged by prosecutors that Rice had caused Gray’s death previous year by failing to fasten him in a seat belt in the back of the police van, where he suffered severe spinal cord injuries.
“He should have restrained him”, said Schatzow.
Defense attorney and legal analyst Warren Brown had predicted Rice would not be convicted of any of the charges.
Shortly after the verdict was announced, the White House said it expects individuals who might have concerns with the court’s decision to “register those concerns peacefully”, apparently attempting to mitigate any potentially violent reactions to the verdict as tensions run high from a string of police killings of black men by police officers.
Continue reading to see the status of the officers involved in the case.
Six Baltimore police officers were charged in Gray’s death.
But Doug Colbert, a law professor at the University of Maryland who has followed the cases, said there is still value in having brought the prosecutions, even if they are unsuccessful. Officer Garrett Miller is the next officer to go on trial in the Freddy Gray case, scheduled for July 27. A retrial is scheduled for Porter in September. A sixth officer, Sgt. Alicia White, will begin her on trial on October 13. All of the officers have pleaded not guilty.
Brian Rice, center, is escorted from the courthouse to a waiting vehicle after being found not guilty on all charges related to the death of Freddy Gray, Monday, July 18, 2016, in Baltimore.
Prosecutors sought to show that Rice, as the senior officer on the scene, bore the responsibility for Gray’s death. “For all that has changed in police reform and public perception since Ferguson two years ago, black men who appear to present no clear threat are still dying at the hands of police”.
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This report contains material from the Associated Press and Reuters.
