Hung jury in Freddie Gray trial of officer

Now, the prosecution must decide whether to retry the case, but the mistrial puts the prosecution in a bind.

“To paint a picture of an entire department that’s inherently corrupt, that every cop is out there to convict someone who hasn’t committed a crime or wants to trample on that person’s civil rights, then the defense can say: Don’t take it out on William Porter”, he said. It was not immediately clear whether Porter would be tried again.

Andy Levy, a litigator in Baltimore, said Porter’s testimony, which he said appeared credible, undermined prosecutors’ effort to paint him as a criminal.

Mainstream media exploded when news that the anticipated case against Baltimore Police Officer William Porter who was charged for participating in the death of Freddie Gray resulted in a mistrial. The other three officers are white.

The Rev. C.D. Witherspoon speaks during a peaceful protest at the intersection of North and Pennsylvania Avenues, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015, in Baltimore, the site of unrest following the funeral of Freddie Gray. If they drop the case against Porter, the remaining five may simply walk. Wednesday’s outcome should blunt some of those criticisms, analysts said. The defense exploited deep fissures between the police and the people of Baltimore, saying the department failed its officers as well as the city it’s created to protect.

At least two activists were arrested last night, including Kwame Rose, who called the mistrial an “injustice”.

Talking to CNN on Wednesday after news of the hung jury, he said simply, “I’m doing well”, but declined to comment further.

“I’m disappointed that it wasn’t a not-guilty”, said Renea Somerville, a friend of Porter’s mother and grandfather who was among a handful of character witnesses who testified in the trial. “She went where constituents wanted her to go”. “Their hand has been weakened because everybody is seeing that they couldn’t get any conviction with this one guy”. I urge everyone to remember that collectively, our reaction needs to be one of respect for our neighborhoods, and for the residents and businesses of our city. “Each side knows exactly what the other side thought was their strongest case. and they each know what the holes in that strongest case are”.

Gray’s death ignited protests as debate surged nationwide over whether police use excessive force, particularly against African-Americans. “How long does it take to click a seat belt and ask for a medic?” Baltimore erupted in protests and riots past year after Gray died of a spinal injury suffered while he was in police custody.

During a 2012 spot check, no detainees were buckled in agency vans but, by 2015, three consecutive audits showed most or all detainees in the vans inspected had been placed in seat belts.

Had he been convicted, the state could have tried to “flip” him to testify against the other officers, according to Alperstein. The mistrial will likely complicate prosecutors’ plans, and as such, their strategy moving forward.

Reading from a statement, Richard Shipley, Gray’s stepfather, told CNN he is hopeful Porter will be retried. On Tuesday, after only nine hours of deliberation, they told Williams they were deadlocked. “I realize that [the jury] had a very tough task but this is a major blow to the fight for justice in Baltimore and nationally and I think we missed the opportunity early on to send the message that we are taking a hard line against an in opposition to police terror”, he said. “These people are exhausted”. “It doesn’t necessarily tell you what is going to happen next time”. The trial ended Wednesday with a hung jury and mistrial.

-Could there have been a split decision?

-Why were jurors split?

Back at square one, prosecutors and defense attorneys met in Williams’ chambers Thursday morning to discuss dates for a possible retrial.

DSS: While rare, mistrials occur in our legal system and state prosecutors usually win.

-Will the mistrial affect other trials?

Porter is one of six officers charged in Gray’s death.

“You’re not seeing less willingness of prosecutors bringing these cases”.