Let the process work.Baltimore's State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced Friday morning that several officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray will face homicide charges.
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These charges include — but are not limited to — second-degree murder, manslaughter, misconduct in office and false imprisonment.
Baltimore prosecutor learned life's lessons in Boston 'police house'BALTIMORE (Reuters) - Baltimore's chief prosecutor charged one police officer with murder on Friday and five others with lesser crimes in the death of a young black man who suffered a critical neck injury in the back of a police van, . . . .
The prosecutor needs to have all her ducks in a row on this one.The most serious charge, against the driver of the van, Officer Ceasar Goodson, is second-degree “depraved heart’’ murder, which involves a special degree of reckless indifference. But proving that charge beyond a reasonable doubt is a significant challenge, according to defense lawyers and former prosecutors.
They said it will also be difficult to persuade jurors to vote guilty on other serious charges against the officers, including manslaughter and assault.
Freddie Gray was a 25-year-old African American man who was arrested by the Baltimore Police Department on April 12, 2015. He died one week later on April 19, 2015, from a severe spinal cord injury sustained while in police custody.
Freddy Gray was arrested for allegedly possessing an illegal switchblade. During the arrest, he sustained a severe spinal cord injury that ultimately led to his death. It is still unclear how exactly he sustained the injury.
The six officers charged in the case were Caesar R. Goodson Jr., Garrett E. Miller, William G. Porter, Edward M. Nero, Brian W. Rice, and Alicia D. White. They were all members of the Baltimore Police Department at the time of the incident.
The charges against the 6 officers included second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, assault, reckless endangerment, and misconduct in office. Each officer faced different charges, and their trials were held separately.
After multiple trials, only three of the six officers were found guilty of any charges. Caesar R. Goodson Jr. was acquitted of all charges, while Edward M. Nero and Brian W. Rice were found not guilty of all charges. The other three officers had their charges dropped or were mistried.