First trial over the death of Freddie Gray ends in hung jury

Williams dismissed the eight women and four men on the panel, telling them “thank you for your diligence”. They also have suggested that he might have deliberately injured himself. There is as of yet no news on a retrial.

Gray suffered neck and spinal cord injuries while in the back of a police van on April 12.

Porter faced charges of involuntary manslaughter, assault/second degree and misconduct in office. Mr. Porter, 26, is black, as are two of the other officers; the rest are white.

It was not immediately clear whether Porter will face another trial.

The State’s Attorney’s Office did not comment Wednesday, citing a “gag order that pertains to all cases related to Freddie Gray”. “We must continue to channel our emotions into strong, positive change, so that, as a city, we truly see our young men of color before it is too late”, Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, said in a statement.

The case was one of several recent high-profile instances in the USA where officers have been accused of a wrongful killing while on duty. Gray’s injury in police custody sparked weeks of protests and fueled the nation’s scrutiny of how police treat black suspects.

Jazmin Holloway sits below a mural depicting Freddie Gray at the intersection of his arrest, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015, in Baltimore.

Prisoners were never secured with seat belts during field training, and though cadets were instructed to secure prisoners with seat belts, they were not shown how, Porter said.

Porter was the first of six Baltimore Police Department officials charged in the Gray case, after the 25-year-old died after an arrest, after which he was reportedly given a so-called unrestrained “rough ride” in the police van and requested, but did not receive, medical attention.

The six officers were later indicted on numerous criminal charges, including assault, involuntary manslaughter, and second-degree murder with a depraved heart.

“I think you will have the same scenario with the other trials”, Brown said. All six officers involved have pleaded not guilty. He was then handcuffed and shackled before being put in the back of a police transport van, where he was not strapped in, a violation of Baltimore Police Department policy. “As long as he is facing charges, he can’t be compelled to testify”.

A new trial date will be set tomorrow.

In anticipation of possible demonstrations after the verdict, metal barriers were placed in front of the downtown courthouse and adjacent corners.

Both are charged with disorderly conduct, failure to obey a law enforcement officer’s command, and disturbing the peace by using a bullhorn outside the courthouse while court was in session. She urged protesters to remain peaceful and warned, “We will protect our residents, our businesses, our neighborhoods”.

“We can not and will not be defined by the unrest of last spring”, she said.

“A hung jury is a defeat for the prosecution, especially when they needed Porter to make some of these other cases”, Toobin said.

Jurors sent notes asking for an explanation of terms including “evil motive” and “bad faith”, the standards by which they were told to weigh the misconduct charge.

Prosecutors considered Porter’s case as key to help strengthening the case against van driver Caesar Goodson, Jr.