Death of Freddie Gray
Freddie Carlos Gray, Jr.
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| Date |
April 12, 2015 (incident) April 19, 2015 (Gray's death) |
|---|---|
| Location | Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Type | Death while in police custody |
| Cause | Spinal cord injury |
| Filmed by | Two witnesses to Gray's arrest, store video of police van |
| Participants | Freddie C. Gray, six Baltimore police officers |
| Outcome | Death of Freddie Gray on April 19, 2015, protests, rioting |
| Burial | April 27, 2015 |
| Inquiries | U.S. Department of Justice; Baltimore Police Department |
| Arrest(s) | 1 |
| Accused | Caesar R. Goodson Jr., William G. Porter, Brian W. Rice, Edward M. Nero, Garrett Miller, Alicia D. White |
| Charges |
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| Verdict | Nero (Acquitted), Porter (Mistrial followed by all charges dropped), Goodson (Acquitted), Rice (Acquitted), Miller (Nolle prosequi), White (Nolle prosequi) |
| Litigation | The City of Baltimore settled at $6.4 million prior to the Gray's family filing to sue |
April 12, 2015 (incident)
On April 12, 2015, Freddie Carlos Gray, Jr., a 25-year-old Black American man, was arrested by the Baltimore Police Department for possessing what the police alleged was an illegal switchblade under Baltimore law. While being transported in a police van, Gray fell into a coma and was taken to a trauma center. Gray died on April 19, 2015; his death was ascribed to injuries to his spinal cord. On April 21, 2015, pending an investigation of the incident, six Baltimore police officers were suspended with pay.
The circumstances of the injuries were initially unclear; eyewitness accounts suggested that the officers involved used unnecessary force against Gray during the arrest—a claim denied by all officers involved. Commissioner Anthony W. Batts reported that, contrary to department policy, the officers did not secure him inside the van while driving to the police station; this policy had been put into effect six days prior to Gray's arrest, following review of other transport-related injuries sustained during police custody in the city, and elsewhere in the country during the preceding years. The medical investigation found that Gray had sustained the injuries while in transport. The medical examiner's office concluded that Gray's death could not be ruled an accident, and was instead a homicide, because officers failed to follow safety procedures "through acts of omission." On May 1, 2015, the Baltimore City State's Attorney, Marilyn Mosby, announced her office had filed charges against six police officers after the medical examiner’s report ruled Gray's death a homicide.
The prosecutors stated that they had probable cause to file criminal charges against the six police officers who were believed to be involved in his death. The officer driving the van was charged with second-degree "depraved-heart" murder for his indifference to the considerable risk that Gray might be killed, and others were charged with crimes ranging from manslaughter to illegal arrest. On May 21, a grand jury indicted the officers on most of the original charges filed by Mosby with the exception of the charges of illegal imprisonment and false arrest, and added charges of reckless endangerment to all the officers involved.
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Wikipedia