Trial of Baltimore officer charged in man’s death heads week of testimony

The medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Freddie Gray said Monday she wouldn’t have ruled his death a homicide if Baltimore police Officer William Porter had called for a medic “promptly” upon coming into contact with Gray.

After the jury left for the day, defense attorneys moved for a mistrial, saying they obtained a document over the weekend from an encounter Gray had with police in March.

“It was always a huge picture when you attempted to detain Freddie Gray”, Porter told investigators during his videotaped interview.

Porter is the first of of six officers on trial for Gray’s death and stands to be sentenced to more than 25 years in prison if convicted, as reported by Reuters. He said swifter medical attention could have saved Gray’s life, and compared the injury, as other doctors have, to a diving accident.

Officer William Porter, 26, is charged with involuntary manslaughter, misconduct, assault and endangerment in Gray’s death in April.

The video, shown to jurors on Friday, shows Porter in a police interview room telling investigators that he thought Gray was exhausted from kicking and rocking the police van after his arrest.

When asked about the van’s speed or the possibility of a sudden deceleration, she said “there’s no evidence, because there are no witnesses”.

Assistant state medical examiner Dr. Carol Allan gave a testimony in which she said she would not have classified Gray’s death as a homicide if medical help had been requested after Porter’s first contact with Gray, according to the Baltimore Sun.

Freddie Gray’s death would not have been ruled a homicide if Officer William Porter had sought medical help when it was asked for, according to assistant medical examiner. He says Gray could not have broken his neck by intentionally banging his head against the walls of the van.

In the video, Porter said another call came in and he departed for a nearby scene, with Goodson following in the police van.

The trial of a Baltimore police officer charged in the death of a black man from injuries suffered in custody is likely to focus on the officer’s medical expertise, the victim’s history of claiming injury and even how closely the officer read his e-mail.

Gray was arrested after a foot chase. He will go on trial next year.

But under questioning, Allan allowed she also wouldn’t have reached a finding of homicide in Gray’s death if the the van’s driver, Officer Caesar Goodson, had gotten medical help for Gray.

With the addition of a white male alternate, that meant the racial makeup of the jury changed to seven black jurors and five white ones.

Another protest against the officers charged is set for 5:30 p.m.in front of the courthouse.

“The defense is going to argue that Officer Porter was forthcoming, candid, had nothing to hide and that’s going to be their theory”.

Long before the bench conference drama, expert witness testified Monday he believes Gray was brain dead after suffering the spinal cord injury that eventually led to his death.

In particular, Murtha attacked Allan’s assertion that Gray’s injuries were sustained between the second and fourth stops made by the van transporting him from the site of his arrest near the Gilmor Homes in west Baltimore to the Western District police station.