A judge in Baltimore is expected on Monday to hand down his verdict in the trial of one of six city police officers charged with the death of Freddie Gray.
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The judgment, following a five-day bench trial, is the first in the closely-watched case.
A judge also found Officer Edward Nero not guilty of reckless endangerment and misconduct in office, saying he acted as any reasonable officer would and only touched Gray after he was in handcuffs. In closing arguments Thursday, Williams had skeptically questioned prosecutors about their theory of assault, which legal experts said was unprecedented. He hugged his attorneys. When the judge said he was not guilty, Nero stood up and hugged his attorney, and appeared to wipe away a tear. “He had a job to do and he did it”.
A Baltimore police officer has been acquitted of assault and other charges in the arrest of Freddie Gray, a young black man who died a week after he was critically injured in police custody. The trial of Officer William Porter, who was charged with involuntary manslaughter, resulted in a hung jury, so a new trial is forthcoming. Nero’s lawyers claim he had little to do with the arrest and it was the responsibility of the officers in the van to buckle Gray. His death became a symbol of the black community’s distrust of police, triggering days of rioting and angry backlash from community members. His freedom and career are on the line and prosecutors are under intense pressure, too: what happens Monday could impact their cases against the other five officers charged. Mayor Rawlings-Blake said that the settlement would help the city avoid a long, drawn-out civil suit. As a result, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is bracing for “disturbances” around the city.
Nero has been a member of the Baltimore Police Department since 2012.
“The internal investigation is being handled by other police departments”. The police statement says Nero’s investigation won’t be completed until the criminal cases against all officers are complete.
The prosecution’s argument was not that Nero caused Gray’s injuries, but that he assaulted him by being involved in what they claimed was an unjustified arrest. The citizens of Baltimore had demanded justice, they said, and that process is playing itself out.
We asked two former Baltimore City prosecutors to weigh in.
“We must remain vigilante to our moral code of peace no matter what the verdict”, he said. “We’ve learned how we reform some police practices”.
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Nero was the second officer to be tried in Gray’s April 2015 death. His retrial is set for September 6.
