On Wednesday, prosecutors dropped all remaining charges against the last three Baltimore police officers accused in the arrest and death of Freddie Gray. Protesters at the Democratic National Convention have already raised #BlackLivesMatter signs and chanted against Hillary Clinton — will those protests intensify after this news?
In a hearing meant to start the trial of Officer Garrett Miller, Chief Deputy State’s Attorney Michael Schatzow said the state was dropping all charges against Miller, William Porter, and Sgt. Alicia White, The Baltimore Sun reported.
“All of our clients are thrilled with what happened today, and we’ll be making a comment later to address the details of what happened,” Catherine Flynn, Miller’s attorney, said outside the courthouse.
Twenty-five-year-old Freddie Gray suffered severe spinal cord injuries in the back of a van in April 2015, and died a week after his arrest. The death sparked widespread protests against police brutality. Following his funeral, riots, looting, and arson erupted in Baltimore, damaging scores of local businesses.
Six officers were originally charged in the Gray case. Officer Porter’s trial ended with a hung jury and a mistrial in December. Judge Barry Williams acquitted Officers Edward Nero and Caesar Goodson, and Lt. Brian Rice at trials in May, June, and July, respectively.
The closing of the final three cases means the office of Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby will secure no convictions in the case after over a year of dogged fighting to hold someone criminally accountable in Gray’s death.
The Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, began on Monday. Tuesday night’s speakers included mothers of black men killed by police in high-profile cases. Gwen Carr, the mother of Eric Garner; Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin; and Lezley McSpadden, Michael Brown’s mother, joined others in addressing the DNC.
Even before the speeches, however, there was a huge protest in Philadelphia, where blacks and whites marched, chanting, “Don’t vote for Hillary, she’s killing black people!”
If Democrats will chant against their historic first woman major party candidate, what are their limits on these issues?
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