Flyer distributed during the protests following Freddie Gray’s death. On Wednesday, judge Barry G. Williams did not dismiss the charges against the six police officers tried in connection to the death of Freddie Gray.
On Wednesday, judge Barry G. Williams did not dismiss the charges against the six police officers tried in connection to the death of Freddie Gray.
At the same time, the U.S. District Court judge did not remove prosecutor Marilyn Mosby from the case, following complaints from the defense attorney the the statements of the State Attorney are both unprofessional and reckless.
Freddie Gray, aged 25 died due to injuries inflicted while he was in the custody of the Baltimore Police. His arrest on April 12th, as well as his death sparked unrest, riots and protests in Baltimore, many echoing declarations of discriminatory and brutal conduct from police officers towards the black community.
Following Freddie Gray’s death, six police officers were indicted, with charges now varying from second-degree murder to second-degree assault. The case captured the national media’s attention amidst growing unrest grabbing several states in the past year alone.
As for the case, the attorney representing one of the police officers under trial, Andrew Graham argued in front of the court that the State’s Attorney comments following the filing of charges violated the rules of conducted and represented more of a
“pep rally calling for payback”.
Judge Barry Williams refused to take this into consideration, also disapproving to follow upon a motion that suggested Mosby should be removed from the case due to conflict of interest. State Attorney Mosby is married to Nick Mosby, councilman of a district that is well-known for violent crime increase.
The officers under charge in the case were not present in court. Officers Goodson, William Porter, Garrett Miller and Edward Nero, as well as Sergeant Alicia White and Lieutenant Brian Rice face a long trial that will decide their grade of implication in the death of Freddie Gray and the sanctions to follow.
They are charged with misconduct, second-degree assault as well as reckless endangerment. Three of them are also under charge for manslaughter, while Goodson is also under charge for second-degree murder.
Judge Williams concluded that the officers will be tried separately. Doing otherwise, he argued, would prejudice them individually.
Next Thursday, the court will hear arguments on whether the venue of trial should be changed.
Photo Credits: Wikimedia
