Freddie Gray Death Aftermath


Freddie Gray was taken into custody on a weapons charge on April 12, 2015. While in custody, he sustained a spinal injury and died a week later. Now the six police officers present during the arrest are facing charges for Gray's death. None of the police officers said that they used force during the arrest.

Photo Source: CNN
From the video available, it looks like Gray was able to get into the police vehicle, but upon exiting the vehicle he was unresponsive. An ambulance was called, but the Deputy Sheriff says that the officers there should have called for one earlier.

Since Gray's death, all of the officers involved have been suspended because that is standard procedure when someone dies while in custody.

Reports now say that they officers may not have been required to take him into custody. Police officers say that Freddie was carrying a weapon. If he had a spring loaded switchblade that would be illegal, but it would not be illegal for him to have a pocket knife. Attorneys for the police officers are trying to prove that the knife Freddie had on himself was illegal.

The state's attorney says that the police did not put Freddie in a seat belt, and that they stopped to pick another suspect instead of taking him directly to central booking.

It is looking uncertain how this case will turn out, but investigations are still on going.

Protests Since:

There have been protests in Baltimore starting two days after Freddie's death. First they went to the local police station, and then they have gone to City Hall. These protests started out as peaceful, but they soon progressed to damaging buildings and property. The protests follow the same reasoning as Michael Brown's and Eric Gardner's. The protesters are calling for justice and want the responsible police officers arrested and charged for the death, while some other protesters want the Police Commissioner to resign.

Comments from Allen:
According to Dr. Ben Carson, who met with the family of Freddie Gray as well as with representatives of the Baltimore P.D., it appears Freddie's neck was broken when one of the officers put his knee in Freddie's neck, and that injury worsened when he was bouncing around in the back of the police car, unrestrained.  It sounds like a very solid wrongful death case.  That is, the officers (covered by insurance as police officers) would be sued by the family of Freddie Gray, and the insurance would be paying a substantial amount in damages for his death.

As to the criminal charges, those would generally be based on some intent to injure Freddie, and that will be hard to prove.  Second degree murder would be incredibly hard to prove.  My take is that the prosecutor in this case overcharged these defendants for some reason other than whether the evidence supported those criminal charges.  It is possible that one or two officers may be convicted of a lesser offense based on reckless conduct, something like manslaughter, but it is also possible that all 6 may be acquitted.  It is not enough that a bad result happened, or that people were rioting in the streets.  Criminal convictions are based on facts and the law.

Allen Browning is an attorney in Idaho Falls, Idaho who handles personal injury and criminal defense. He has over 30 years of experience and handled thousands of cases. Allen work with cases from all over Idaho. Call (208) 542-2700 to set up a free consultation if you are facing legal trouble or you have been involved in an accident.
Also, check out browninglaw.net for more information about Allen and Browning Law.


Allen Browning can help with all personal injury claims including motor vehicle accidents, serious and disabling accidents, and wrongful death claims. Allen Browning can also help with DUI, Felony, Misdemeanor, Domestic Violence, Drug Crimes, Theft, Juvenile Crimes, Violent Crimes, and Probation/Parole Violations. He is one of the most experienced and successful criminal defense attorneys in Idaho.

Sources for more information:

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/22/us/baltimore-freddie-gray-what-we-know/

http://data.baltimoresun.com/freddie-gray/

 http://www.npr.org/2015/05/11/405816866/defense-to-challenge-charges-against-baltimore-police-in-freddie-gray-case

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