Freddie Gray Police Trial Ends In Hung Jury

During deliberations Wednesday, a handful of protesters gathered outside the courthouse, chanting “send those killer cops to jail”. It is up to the prosecutor to decide whether to retry the defendant. Porter, who is black, is charged with reckless endangerment, misconduct, assault and involuntary manslaughter. It is unclear how the mistrial will affect the prosecution’s approach on the other trials, if at all. The case is not decided, and it may be tried again at a later date before a new jury.

The mistrial is a setback for chief Baltimore prosecutor Marilyn Mosby, who moved quickly to charge the six officers on May 1.

Jurors said they were deadlocked and unable to reach a unanimous verdict on any of the four charges against him. Shortly after, jurors let the court know that they were hung. “You have clearly been diligent”.

Demonstrators are gathering, and two have been arrested.

Moments later, a sheriff’s deputy read a statement that people are free to protest but are not permitted to use bullhorns or assemble in front of the courthouse. “They did the best that they could”, Shipley said.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said Wednesday the city should respect the outcome of the case, and repeated that the city is prepared to respond “in the case of any disturbance”.

“Whether you agree or whether you disagree with the jury’s ultimate verdict, our reaction has to be one of respect in Baltimore’s neighborhoods”, she said. “It’s one of six”.

“I don’t buy the nonsense that this is somehow a victory for either side”.

“The prosecution had no intention of winning the case due to their relationship the police department”. “If any of the officers get convicted, it will be a surprise to me”.

A defense attorney declined to comment, saying he was subject to a court gag order.

Mr. Gray, a 25-year-old black man, sustained a broken neck and wasn’t breathing when he was pulled from a police van April 12, following a roughly 40-minute ride with six stops.

The post-mortem examination concluded that Mr Gray probably suffered the injury from being slammed against the compartment’s metal wall during cornering or braking.

The other five trials are scheduled for next year.

Prosecutors sought to undermine Mr. Porter’s credibility by highlighting differences between his courtroom testimony and his two interviews with police investigators in April.

Prosecutors in Porter’s trial argued he was criminally negligent for ignoring a Baltimore Police Department policy requiring officers to seat belt prisoners, and for not calling an ambulance immediately after Gray indicated he needed medical help. The van carrying Gray stopped multiple times, and Porter was responsible for monitoring him between multiple stops.

Porter says Gray didn’t appear injured or in distress, and that it was the van driver’s responsibility to ensure prisoners were transported safely.

Mr Gray was black. The jury was deadlocked on all the charges.

“The fact that hard working jury represent the citizens of Baltimore, indeed a cross section of the citizens of Baltimore, couldn’t reach a verdict says nothing about whether a verdict can be reached in a second trial, nor does it say anything about whether a verdict can be reached for any of the other officers”.

A defense pathologist said Gray’s death should have been considered an accident.