Freddie Gray jurors deadlocked, judge says keep deliberating

After 11 hours of deliberation over two days, the jury in the trial of the first of six Baltimore police officers for the death of Freddie Gray indicated it still had not arrived at a decision on the four charges in the case.

Jurors in the manslaughter trial of a police officer charged in the death of Freddie Gray said Tuesday they were deadlocked, but the judge overseeing the case told them to keep deliberating.

Jurors in the Officer William Porter trial said they were deadlocked Tuesday afternoon. The jury must come to a unanimous decision on each of the charges and the deadlock sets up the possibility of a mistrial being declared in the case.

In closing arguments on Monday, prosecutors told the jury that Porter’s failure to help Gray turned the police van into a “casket on wheels” and amounted to criminal neglect, according to the Baltimore Sun. From that point, the charges will either be dropped or the case retried at the prosecutor’s discretion. Judge Williams earlier today rejected a request by defense lawyer Gary Proctor to declare a mistrial and order a change of venue. That request was denied because the transcripts were not entered into evidence.

The jury sent out notes asking for water, highlighters, sticky notes and paper.

Jurors left the courtroom at about 2:30 p.m. Monday to begin their discussions after a two-week trial.

“There is an absolute absence of evidence that officer Porter acted in an unreasonable manner”, he said. Gray’s death triggered protests, arson and rioting in the majority black city of 620,000 people and intensified a US debate on police treatment of minorities.

Porter’s defense team and attorneys for the other five officers have all previously argued fair and impartial juries could not be found in Baltimore – and therefore the cases must be moved to another jurisdiction.

Last week, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Police Commissioner Kevin Davis cautioned the city to be respectful as the verdict gets closer.

Tuesday is the second day of deliberations.

Prosecutors say that Officer Porter could have saved Gray’s life by restraining him and by calling for medical help after his injury. Gray was arrested about seven city blocks from the station, and yet police stopped the van repeatedly and the trip became a 45-minute journey. In this regard, following Gray’s death, after a stormy and emotional funeral, looting, vandalism, and violent protests have broken out like a rash in Baltimore, and more is anticipated after the verdict is reached.