Mistrial in Freddie Gray case

“I have it on good authority, that the case will be retried…justice is about a process”. “They really have big problems here, because they were planning on using Porter as a witness against the others, and now he’s sort of in this hyperspace”. “Freddie Gray was treated as less than human and killed in police custody”.

Here are five signs the Baltimore is bracing for riots. The trials of the other five officers charged in Gray’s arrest and death were scheduled consecutively, with the next one set for early January. Others, such as the death of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, never even resulted in charges being brought against officers. But because Porter’s attorneys maintained that he was trying to help Gray, the question of intent came down to the prosecution’s word against Porters. Prosecutors meant to call Porter to testify against Goodson and another officer whose trial is slated to begin after Goodson’s.

Ott said he was surprised the jury failed to acquit Porter.

Now, though, everything is up in the air.

With all the frantic activity going on this week I didn’t get the opportunity to revisit the long running saga of the Freddie Gray trials, now unfolding in the burned out remains of Charm City.

Two people were arrested in Baltimore during protests on Wednesday following the announcement of a mistrial for police officer William Porter, who was charged in connection with Freddie Gray’s death.

A judge dismissed the jury Wednesday in the involuntary manslaughter trial of Officer William Porter, who is also black. She says officials will continue to monitor social media and be ready to respond if necessary. The ruling puts prosecutors, defense attorneys and a populace anxious for a resolution back at square one. Prosecutors have not talked to reporters either since leaving court. The decision was made yesterday, December 16, and the Baltimore Sun gave full details later that night. “The state’s attorneys need Porter to place Goodson in the narrative of what happened to Freddie Gray”. “They listened to the evidence presented, and they rendered a decision”. “They are still sitting in the driver’s seat”, Pettit says. He told them to keep working. In the the meantime, he urged the public to be “calm and patient”.

“We are not at all upset with them and neither should the public be upset”, Richard Shipley said.

“Protesters who are lawfully assembled have a friend in the Baltimore Police Department”, Davis said.

Amy Dillard, a Baltimore law professor, told AFP: “I presume there will be another trial”.

Within minutes of his mistrial ruling, a phalanx of uniformed officers surrounded the courthouse.

In court testimony and interviews, Porter and his family, friends and neighbors described an honest officer dedicated to and respected by his community.

Prosecutors are in “serious trouble”, CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said.

“This hung jury is… a major setback for the state because they have neither option available”, Alperstein said. “I don’t buy the nonsense that this is somehow a victory for either side”. One group of demonstrators repeated the “Serenity Prayer” as they moved through the streets.

Protests after the mistrial was announced were mostly peaceful.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, in an interview with MSNBC, said she was not in a position to judge whether city prosecutor Marilyn Mosby had rushed to file charges as Baltimore was in turmoil following Gray’s death.

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

During Monday’s closing arguments, prosecutor Janice Bledsoe argued that any officer in Porter’s situation would have called for medical assistance once Gray complained.

Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Barry Williams has imposed a gag order on all attorneys involved in the case and Mosby’s office said it would have no comment on the mistrial.