-Freddie Gray’s death ruled ‘homicide’, charges against all 6 officers involved
-Baltimore Protests Spreading to Other Cities — as Planned
Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby says there is “probable casue to file criminal charges in the Freddie Gray case” of officers involved in Gray’s arrest, who later died of injuries he sustained while in custody in Baltimore, Maryland (Reuters / Adrees Latif)
May 01, 2015
Maryland State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby announced criminal charges against all six police officers involved in the arrest of Freddie Gray, which she declared “a homicide” and “an illegal arrest.” Five of the officers have been arrested.
“The findings of our comprehensive, thorough and independent investigation, coupled with the medical examiner’s determination that Mr. Gray’s death was a homicide ‒ which we received today ‒ has led us to believe that we have probably cause to file criminal charges,” Mosby announced at a press conference on Friday morning.
“Warrants have been executed, and five officers are in custody,” Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake told reporters Friday afternoon.
“No one is above the law in our city. i was sickened and heartbroken at the reading of charges today,” the mayor said. “Justice must apply to all of us equally.”
After fleeing police on April 12, Gray was arrested and charged with carrying a switchblade knife, which is illegal in Baltimore City.
“The knife was not a switchblade and is lawful under Maryland law,” Mosby said, contradicting the charging documents.
Mosby said that Gray was not secured in the van with a seatbelt, which is against police regulations, and he was handcuffed and placed in leg irons. This led to his injuries, according to the investigation. During one of the stops police officers checked on Gray, saw that he was unresponsive, but failed to take any actions to assist him.
“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. He had been placed “on his stomach, head first onto the floor of the wagon.”
Despite pleading for a medic during the third stop of his transport ride, neither of the two officers observing Gray called for medical assistance. By the fourth stop, where another detainee was picked up, Gray’s “seriously deteriorating medical condition” had rendered him unresponsive. Still none of the officers ‒ including the police sergeant assigned to investigate two citizen complaints pertaining to Gray’s arrest ‒ requested medical help.
“The manner of death deemed a homicide by the Maryland state medical examiner is believed to be the result of a fatal injury that occurred while Mr. Gray was unrestrained by a seatbelt while in the custody of the Baltimore Police Department wagon,” Mosby said.
Officer Caesar Goodson, 45, who drove the van, is charged with second-degree depraved heart murder, involuntary manslaughter, second-degree negligent assault, manslaughter by vehicle by means of gross negligence, manslaughter by vehicle by means of criminal negligence, misconduct in office for failure to secure a prisoner, and failure to render aid.
Officer William Porter, 25, is being charged with involuntary manslaughter, assault in the second degree and misconduct in office.
Baltimore State's Attorney says officers illegally arrested Freddie Gray. http://t.co/RfDWOVk2Q1—
Will Carr (@WillCarrFNC) May 01, 2015
Lieutenant Brian Rice, 41, who led the chase of Gray, is being charged with involuntary manslaughter, assault in the second degree, misconduct in office and false imprisonment.
Officers Edward Nero, 29, and Garrett Miller, 26, are being charged with assault in the second degree ‒ intentional; assault in the second degree ‒ negligent; misconduct in office; and false imprisonment.
Sergeant Alicia White, 30, is being charged with involuntary manslaughter, second degree assault and misconduct in office.
“A warrant has been issued for their arrests,” Mosby told reporters. “We filed the statement of charges this morning at about 9:30, 10 o’clock this morning.”
She would not comment on whether any of the officers had been arrested yet.
Six #Baltimore police officers charged in "homicide" of #FreddieGray http://t.co/csiyHj0v5K pic.twitter.com/tu3avcZPOA
— RT America (@RT_America) May 1, 2015
“While I am committed to transparency, what I have revealed here today is now a matter of public record. However, the evidence that we have collected and continue to collect cannot ethically be released to the public,” Mosby said when she finished reading the charges she had filed.
“I strongly condemn anyone in law enforcement with access to trial evidence who has leaked information prior to the resolution of this case,” she added. “You are only damaging our ability to conduct a fair and impartial process for all parties involved.”
Mosby also called for calm in Baltimore of the wake of her announcement.
“I heard your call for ‘no justice, no peace,” she said. “Your peace is sincerely needed as I work to deliver justice on behalf of this young man.”
http://rt.com/usa/254913-gray-autopsy-state-attorney/
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Understanding Baltimore’s Violence
As much as the United States thinks it’s made lots of progress on racial equality – we have a black president, you know – the on-the-street reality has, in many ways, gotten worse with the “war on drugs,” police violence and other repressive policies devastating black communities — and finally provoking a violent response, says Daniel Patrick Welch.
May 1, 2015 By Daniel Patrick Welch
First of all, spare me any #notallwhites vitriol because you haven’t personally lynched any black people today. If that is your initial reaction, you have already missed the points I haven’t even made yet. You might want to stop reading here (though you in particular should probably read the whole thing).
It is a thing of sheer beauty — terrible, evil beauty to be sure. But beauty nonetheless in the way that a near perfect, almost poetic conflation of hubris, hyperbole and hypocrisy can be admired for its boldness and bluster: Resistance to oppression is required to be polite, and to conform to standards of politeness set by the very oppressors themselves and their allies, witting or un-.
President Barack Obama at the White House on April 28, 2015, making comments on the death of Baltimore resident Freddie Gray apparently from injuries suffered at the hands of police. (White House photo)
President Barack Obama at the White House on April 28, 2015, making comments on the death of Baltimore resident Freddie Gray apparently from injuries suffered at the hands of police. (White House photo)
FUCK YOU. The youth of Baltimore are rising and expressing a pent up rage that is centuries in the making. It is not for me to tut-tut and impose my idea of political organization. The Left needs to watch, and learn. Look at who is protecting whom, who is threatening whom, who is siding with whom. Judge the media. Judge the police state. Judge a white supremacist society in all of its tentacles that shape our perception and experience in so many fields. This is the lens through which to understand what’s going on.
As one friend sardonically observed, “White people care more about white property than black lives, which is ironic, considering black lives used to be white property. Through memes and social media, friends probe the irony of white people rushing to defend the property rights of a megacorporation whose greed for profit has destroyed more local businesses in Baltimore than “looters” ever could, spawning the hashtag #jesuiscvs and “White people be like #AllStoresMatter.”
The rising body count from what seems to be unchecked police violence is old news to those raising black and brown children in this society. These tips of the iceberg that gain national attention are a window into the daily worries of our communities, shedding light on what a challenging and scary proposition it is — some of the dangers and fears parents of white children rarely have to confront.
This is probably why outside observers completely miss the significance of the now viral footage of the black mother beating her son in public in Baltimore. Police and media tout her as a model mom, implying that she was against the protests or thought her son should respect the police.
The simple fact was far less dramatic — in her own words she just didn’t want her son to be another Freddie Gray — a fact immediately obvious to those in the community, but perhaps lost on those who thrill at the idea of someone – anyone — beating down a young black man.
For our own part, we want our son to be focusing on first year finals next week, not out posing as target practice for killer cops. Parents tend to be a bit conservative when it comes to kids’ lives — can you blame us? That is why we also need to watch, listen and learn.
While we were right in the middle of tweeting, texting and sharing about what police brutality’s Enabler-in-chief called the “senseless violence” in Baltimore, it happened again like clockwork. Unarmed 20-year-old Terrence Kellum was shot 10 times by Immigration police (working jointly with Detroit police) in his parents’ home just a few hours ago.
But please tell us again about “bad apples” and “isolated incidents,” and how “some police officers did the wrong thing.” Really, I’m all ears. My cousin was taken in by these same people a few years back. Guess we’re lucky he made it out alive… What is also shocking (to some of us) is how invisible this internalized perspective is. The white jury watched video footage of Rodney King and just couldn’t see police brutality.
When white observers see footage of a black mother running in the street with toilet paper and diapers — instead of a desperate mother trying to provide for her family at the end of a month (thanks for the cuts in food stamps, by the way) — they see a violent thug.
And in public, many whites aggressively pursue and defend this point of view. I was in a bar recently and had to try to keep my composure while a patron droned on and on about how the cop who drove into that kid at 50 mph had “no other choice.”
And all the while I’m supposed to worry more about a killer cop’s twisted ankle than the survival of my own son and brothers. Are you fucking kidding me? On what planet?? This stands at the very core of white supremacist thought — even when the “thinkers” are ignorant of it. We need to amplify our collective voice and speak out — and encourage and support those kids on the front line who are speaking truth. We are up against the most sophisticated propaganda matrix the world has ever seen.
Remember Malcolm: “If you’re not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.”
Above all, we need to be careful. But not in the way politicians and handwringers like to think: My people have been killing you for centuries. But please, let me tell you how to resist. Or lead your movement — even better. The utterly depressing thing about the now ubiquitous comparisons to the “riots” of the 1960s is that, 50 years later, conditions are actually more hopeless.
Inequality is measurably, tangibly worse. There is no talk of a national commission or legislation to address the elephant in the room. No opposition to the status quo of the police state is tolerated from any quarter taken seriously; there is no organized dissent or political force to push back.
Moreover, and even more dangerous, the increased repression is part and parcel of a global assault on all the peoples and countries of the Global South — a worldwide Jim Crow, as it were — by an ever-more-bloodthirsty unipolar war machine. Scary, depressing shit.
This is a global struggle, folks. The fight to eliminate broken windows police terror at home is inextricably linked to the struggles of our global south peoples to push back against the systemic and overwhelming violence that fuels endless imperial wars.
The symbolic and real juxtaposition of Palestinian and American youth, cast in rock-throwing positions side by side, raised the tag “Baltimore Intifada.” What they use against these kids is what has been, is being, and will be trotted out to repress dissent not only against them, but any of us who try to resist.
Cartoonist Matt Lubansky penned a hilarious and pointed piece titled “Great Moments in the History of Peaceful Protest.” Example: “1791: Haitian slaves ask very nicely to be freed and are immediately liberated by all those reasonable white people.” It is a brilliant prebuttal to all the fools who can’t repress the need to preach to the next generation of revolutionaries how they would get much farther if they would just calm down and circulate a few petitions.
And vote for Hillary!
(c) 2015 Daniel Patrick Welch http://www.danielpwelch.com/
https://consortiumnews.com/2015/05/01/understanding-baltimores-violence/
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Baltimore Protests Spreading to Other Cities — as Planned
May 1st, 2015
Just a quick update, the Baltimore protests are quickly spreading to other cities.
Last night, the LA Times reported:
In Philadelphia, shoving briefly broke out between police and a crowd of several hundred demonstrators who otherwise marched peacefully through the city for several hours. A peaceful crowd of about 300 demonstrators also gathered to protest in Cincinnati, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Those solidarity demonstrations were the latest in a series held in cities across the nation this week.
In addition, protests have been held in New York City, with more planned for D.C., Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, Chicago and San Diego.
The word “planned” was emphasized above because, as The Daily Sheeple has previously reported, these protests are starting to look an awful lot like Ferguson redux, and it has since come out on record that George Soros funded the Ferguson protests to the tune of $33 million. In fact, researchers have already concluded that the same “professional protesters” found at Ferguson are all over Baltimore…
Sure seems like we are being psychologically conditioned to accept martial law in this country.
Taking it a step further, you have Wag the Dog-esque scenes like this one:
http://www.thedailysheeple.com/baltimore-protests-spreading-to-other-cities-as-planned_052015
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Race Baiter Al Sharpton Shoves Fox News, But Not Over Taxes
5/01/2015 by Robert W. Wood
You have to hand it to ‘Reverend’ Al Sharpton for being in the right place at the right time. Fox News reporter Leland Vittert got into a heated confrontation with Sharpton when Sharpton tried to keep him from questioning Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.
“We can’t ask questions?” Vittert challenged, “You are a public official and we can’t ask questions?” Sharpton snapped back that, “You will have the opportunity. At the press conference, we will answer all questions,” Sharpton said.
When second man began pushing the reporter away. Sharpton threw up his arm and gave a light shove. Vittert said he didn’t get to ask Mayor Rawlings-Blake whether she ordered Baltimore police to stand down and let the crowd loot. She might not have been able to answer in a way that turned the tables, but Rev. Sharpton probably could. He always seems to get by just fine.
That appears to apply to taxes too. Rev. Sharpton has plenty of experience with delinquent taxes, and so do other MSNBC hosts. With tax debts and his overall notoriety, he looks a trifle close to the White House. In fact, Mike Allen, Politico’s chief White House correspondent, asked outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder, “Is Al Sharpton too close to this White House?” It isn’t an irrelevant question.
Rev. Sharpton is revered as an activist by many, yet not by all. For example, he has been accused by Eric Garner’s daughter, of being all about the money. Rev. Sharpton has also long had big tax troubles. He has owed hundreds of thousands of dollars to New York State and millions to the IRS. Most taxpayers with debts that large and outstanding that long would be pushed and prodded to pay.
The Reverend seems unfazed, living a kind of charmed life, even if his finances are notoriously a little sloppy. Perhaps it is the fact that he is an MSNBC host, where taxes look somewhat optional. After all, look at the recent revelations that four MSNBC hosts owe tax debts. Arguably, though, those debts are not up to Mr. Sharpton’s standards. In fact, Rev. Sharpton could surely teach others at MSNBC how the tax game is played.
One trump card in that game might be fires. On several occasions, Rev. Sharpton had fires that destroyed his records just as he was about to turn them over to officials. He may have explained the tax receipts rule the IRS keeps quiet. In Cohan v. Commissioner, the Appeals Court rocked the IRS back on its heels with the Cohan Rule. It allows taxpayers to prove by “other credible evidence” they actually incurred deductible expenses.
No matter, Mr. Sharpton was able to get the nation’s top law enforcement officer, the recently departed Attorney General Eric Holder, to defend him. General Holder found nothing wrong with Rev. Sharpton’s ties to the White House. Still, many questions remain why President Obama would keep Rev. Sharpton so close when he owes millions in taxes.
Mr. Holder saw no problem with Rev. Sharpton’s proximity to the most powerful man in the world. General Holder said, “The president has a number of people who he listens to, who he interacts with. You know, Reverend Sharpton is a person who has interacted with people within the administration, including myself. But we also hear from people who have, you know, fundamentally different views than Al Sharpton has.”
http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2015/05/01/al-sharpton-gets-physical-with-fox-news-but-not-over-taxes/
MSNBC Hosts owning large amount of taxes
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