Tag Archives: Baltimore

Police Officers In Baltimore Charged

Every officer connected to the arrest of Freddie Gray in Baltimore has now been charged with crimes by the city’s state’s attorney.

State’a Attorney Marilyn Mosby said Friday that Freddie Gray’s death was a homicide, that his arrest was illegal and that she was charging every officer involved with crimes ranging from murder to “misconduct in office.”

“The findings of our comprehensive, thorough and independent investigation, coupled with the medical examiner’s determination that Mr. Gray’s death was a homicide,” Mosby said, “has led us to believe that we have probable cause to file criminal charges.”

“To the people of Baltimore and the demonstrators across America, I heard your call for ‘no justice, no peace’. Your peace is sincerely needed, as I work to deliver justice on behalf of this young man.” Mosby added.

The announcement of charges was expected to take longer than less than 24 hours from the delivery of the police department’s report on the incident.  The city is still under a nighttime curfew from Monday’s riots.

“Mr. Gray suffered a severe and critical neck injury as a result of being handcuffed, shackled by his feet and unrestrained inside of the BPD wagon,” Mosby said.

President Obama responded to the news of charges by saying that the legal process should run its course.

“What I think the people of Baltimore want more than anything else is the truth,” Obama said.

The Fraternal Order of Police challenged the actions of prosecutor and said that an independent prosecutor needs to be assigned to the case because of potential bias.

NFL Star on Baltimore: Only Christ Can Mend Us

An NFL star is boldly addressing the situation in Baltimore, saying that the problem is that people are not turning to the one who can truly bring healing: Christ.

Benjamin Watson, 11 year NFL veteran and current tight end for the New Orleans Saints, said that the problems in Baltimore are not unique to that city and will likely happen again somewhere else.  However, the problems are not just in cities but the nation.

“We have major problems as a nation. Yesterday, Ferguson burned. Tonight #Baltimore burns. Tomorrow, it will be another city in our homeland,” Watson wrote. “Watching the coverage I’m hearing yet another version of a nauseatingly familiar narrative: violence by police reciprocated by violence by the community, reciprocated by violence by police reciprocated by.… It seems fruitless to continue to analyze, condemn, and respond to these dreadful episodes.”

“Our problems are wholistic [sic] and common to the human heart. Hatred, prejudice, exploitation, pride, self righteousness, secrecy, and rebellion, manifest itself in the explosions we’ve seen over the last year, the last century, and the last millennia,” Watson continued. “Tonight I see so much entrenched pain without remedy. Most are handling it without violence while a few are committing the unacceptable.”

The remedy he said was Jesus.

“Tonight I see ‘smoke,’ but we must address the fire. The response that we are watching is just ‘smoke’ from years of hopelessness,” Watson described. “After each situation the more I am convinced that the love of God for our fellow brothers and sisters who were created in His image is our only hope for reconciliation.”

He also said that churches need to get out and make a difference in their neighborhoods because “holding hands and singing” is not the answer.

“But the only way we can even see Him that way is if God illuminates our view and changes our thought process. I’m not talking about holding hands and singing. Love is an action that compels one to treat another with dignity and respect even if they don’t deserve it,” Watson opined. “It pushes for education and opportunities for those in poverty. It gives identity and self worth. It administers justice without abuse. It honors authority and promotes peace. It is not weak, but strong for what is right!”

Witness Says Freddie Gray Tried To Injure Himself

In a new twist to the situation with Baltimore and rioting over alleged police brutality, a witness has come forward saying that Freddie Gray, the man who died from a spinal injury, may have attempted to injure himself inside a police van.

The Washington Post reported a prisoner who was in the transport van with Gray heard him “banging against the walls” and that he believed he was “trying to injure himself.”  The prisoner, whose name is being withheld and is currently incarcerated, could not see Gray because of a metal partition. Officials are trying to keep the prisoner’s identity secret because of fears he will be killed by other inmates who are sympathetic to the rioters.

Police have admitted that Gray was wrongly denied medical attention when he first requested it. Paramedics weren’t called until the van arrived at the police station which took 30 minutes.

Attorneys for the Gray family do not believe that Gray injured himself.

“We disagree with any implication that Freddie Gray severed his own spinal cord,” attorney Jason Downs said. “We question the accuracy of the police reports we’ve seen thus far, including the police report that says Mr. Gray was arrested without force or incident.”

The police have confirmed that half of those arrested during the riots on Monday have been released without charges.  A police spokesman said in the chaos of the rioting, it was difficult to document which officers made which arrest and that officers could not figure out within 48 hours who they had arrested in the riot.

The official total of officers injured in the Monday riot was raised to 20.

The city remains under a state of emergency and nightly curfew.

Violent Protests Break Out Again In Ferguson

While most of the nation was focused on the unrest in Baltimore, the riots in Ferguson began again.

Police say three people were shot, over 100 shots were fired and multiple small fires were set last night as people protested against the Freddie Gray incident.

Acting Police Chief Al Eickhoff told reporters that two of the people shot were hit in the neck and the third hit in the leg.  A 20-year-old man is under arrest for one of the shooting incidents and five others were arrested on charges ranging from burglary to brandishing a weapon.

“This community is trying to move forward and there are people who are just set on violence,” Eickhoff said. “(The people who committed crimes) were not protesters, they were just a criminal element set on undoing all that this community has done to move forward.”

“We’ve got a certain amount of a criminal element that do not want to see the community move forward. We’ve got a completely new face on the city council and we’re changing things. I’m not sure if they’re just resisting it or what. The three shooting victims we had were rioters, and while we’re trying to take care of the victims, they’re intent on damaging the policemen who are trying to help the rioters that have been shot.”

In a scene reminiscent of the earlier Ferguson riots, a convenience store was looted by a mob. At least two dozen people ransacked the store just after 1:30 a.m. taking liquor, cigarettes, candy, lottery tickets and about $80 from a cash drawer.

The store was a block away from where the gunshot victims were hit.

Police were on the streets to stop rioters until 3:30 a.m. according to Eickhoff.

Baltimore Community Provides Lunches for Children

After the mayor of Baltimore closed the schools in the wake of the Monday night riots, community groups rallied to find ways to feed children who would not have had a meal because of the school’s closure.

Pleasant Hope Baptist Church worked with other faith groups to provide not only meals but activities for the youth.

“There are several safe harbors,” Pleasant Hope spokeswoman Jessica Ross told FRSN. “If you go onto Facebook and you just look for Pleasant Hope Baptist Church, you can see an entire list of safe harbors of multiple churches throughout the city. Also, I believe all recreation centers are open between 11am and 7 p.m. I believe that Callowhill Aquatic Center is open tonight and serving dinner until 5 p.m. So there are definitely plenty of safe places for youth to go to today. It’s not perfect but there are a lot of people out there who are trying to have safe harbors for our kids.”

More than 70,000 students in the city receive free or reduced cost lunches.

“Once that call went out, people started bringing things down almost immediately. And then we were getting a lot of phone calls asking what to do, whether if people who had stuff could bring it down and we just said ‘yes.’ If we didn’t use it all, we know people to give it to,” Red Emma’s Bookstore and Cafe owner Cullen Nawalkowsky said.

Northside Baptist Church provided food and activities for the youth.  Outreach Coordinator Betty Smith said that the local media didn’t focus attention on those who were making a difference and feeding the kids.

“The TV stations show all of the negative stuff and nobody showed up here today to show any of the positive stuff,” Smith said.

The Expected Unexpected

On Monday morning, April 27th, the people of Baltimore woke to a normal Monday morning.  There was tension in the air from the recent demonstrations that the city had been experiencing. But most families, I would imagine, were not thinking about riots and looting or fires and destruction.  People woke up, had their breakfast, got their children to school and went to work.  Most were not prepared for what was to come. Continue reading →

Two Faces Of Humanity Seen In Baltimore

It wasn’t all a gang of rioters in Baltimore last night.

The gang members who Baltimore officials said were banding together to attack police went to the media with a message that they didn’t call a truce so they could team up to attack the police; they were teaming up to stop the rioting.

A group of Bloods gang members told WBAL-TV that they had been attacked on the streets when they were stopping rioters from damaging buildings and businesses by police who did not realize they were attempting to stop the riots.

A member of the BGF gang said that the groups were “black men united for justice” and that people need to stop believing everything they’re hearing in the media because they’re tired of being blamed for the rioting when in this case they’re not involved with the crimes.

Others stepped up to stop the rioting and protests in an attempt to bring calm to the city of Baltimore…including the family of Freddie Gray.  Gray’s family, clergy and residents of the area banded together to stop the violence.

“I want them all to go back home,” said the Rev. Jamal Bryant.  “It’s disrespect to the family. The family was very clear — we’ve been saying it all along — today there was absolutely no protest, no demonstration.”

Members of a Christian church formed a human wall as well as other faith groups.

CNN showed video of a parent coming into the middle of the rioting and grabbing her son, forcing him to go home.

“I wish I had more parents that took charge of their kids out there tonight,” Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said.

The darker side of the city was shown all night through looting, arson and violence.  A drug treatment center and senior center that was under construction was burned to the ground by protesters.  A CVS pharmacy, a locally-owned pharmacy, liquor store and multiple cars were robbed and burned.

Social Media Shows Link Between Ferguson & Baltimore Violence

Fox News discovered a report that shows a link between the violence in Ferguson, MO and the violence that is burning Baltimore.

A government related data mining firm has found between 20 and 50 social media accounts in Baltimore that were connected to the peak of the violence and rioting in Ferguson.  The discovery suggests that “professional protesters” are taking advantage of the Baltimore situation in an attempt to cause anarchy and violence.

Fox reported that the data mining company said the locations could be spoofed, but that they can’t fully explain away the massive numbers if that would be the case.

The launching of the Monday rioting began via social media when calls were placed for a “purge” starting at the Mondawmin Mall and moving downtown.  The reference was to a movie called “The Purge” where for 12 hours there is no police or emergency response, allowing citizens to commit acts of crime and violence with immunity.

While gang members are denying they were working together to focus on white police officers, texts through social media did show accounts calling for people to “kill all white police officers” in response to the death of Freddie Gray.

A 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew for all Baltimore citizens goes into effect tonight and will last for one week.

Gangs Vow Unified Attacks on Baltimore Police

Baltimore police investigators have confirmed that the city’s three biggest gangs are joining together to attack police following the funeral of Freddie Gray.

The Bloods, Crips and the Black Guerrilla Family have formed what’s being labeled a “partnership” to “take out” the police.

Spokesmen for the Baltimore police would not officially say the threat is connected to the death of Freddie Gray but the coordinated assaults on police officers began shortly after the end of Gray’s funeral service Monday in Baltimore.

The news of the unification of the gangs backs up a previous warning this year from the FBI that the Black Guerrilla Family gang was targeting “white cops” in the state.  A member of the BGF was caught in a Baltimore area police station with a gun in January in what he said was a “security test” of the precinct ordered by gang leaders.

The gang members have been posting on social media their actions against police, flashing gang colors and signs amid the rioting.  They’ve shown kicked in car windows, evidence of looting and other actions while demanding “Justice for Freddie.”

Members of the Nation of Islam said they had brokered the deal between the gangs.

“I can say with honesty those brothers demonstrated they can be united for a common good,” Nation of Islam minister Carlos Muhammad told The Daily Beast.

“At the rally, they made the call that they must be united on that day. It should be commended.”

The incidents involving the gangs in Baltimore are having national impact.  Both the NYPD and the LAPD have announced their officers are on heightened alert over the threats.

Rioters Attack Baltimore Police

Violent black youths stormed out of a funeral for Freddie Gray, the man who died while in Baltimore police custody, and launched a series of violent attacks on police.

The attacks involved throwing rocks and bricks at officers and setting several police vehicles on fire.

Police spokesman Capt. Eric Kowalczyk said that seven officers were injured as a result of attacks from protesters including one who is unresponsive and in critical condition.  Several of the wounded officers are suffering from broken bones due to the projectiles thrown at them.

WMAR Baltimore is reporting that many of the rioters appear to be youths between 14 and 18 years old.  Religious leaders in the region are calling on their followers to find out where their children are and to take them home, especially if they are part of the protests.

Rev. Jamal H. Bryant, who delivered the eulogy for Gray, told CNN that the city was in a “code red crisis.”  He said that men from the Nation of Islam are planning to build a “human wall” to stop the bomb from coming downtown in an attempt to stem the violence.

City Council President Jack Young posted on Facebook pleading with the community to stop their actions.

“The World is watching us to see if we do what took place in 1968,” he said, referring to riots that crippled the city. “We literally destroyed our neighborhood and business. We never really recovered from that.”

Downtown businesses closed early and evacuated their staff after reports indicated the rioters were attempting to head downtown with their violence.

A CVS Pharmacy on W. North Avenue was overrun by protesters who completely looted and destroyed the store.  WMAR-TV showed men sitting in the street going through bags of prescription drugs and a van that was loaded with stolen personal hygiene products.

The family of Freddie Gray had asked at the funeral for no protests following the service.