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Re: Prosecutor charges 6 Baltimore officers in Gray's death

By: Cactus Flower in ALEA | Recommend this post (0)
Sat, 02 May 15 2:33 AM | 74 view(s)
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Msg. 16866 of 54959
(This msg. is a reply to 16865 by clo)

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Why would making a mistake over the possession of a particular knife as a cause for making an arrest add years to anyone's sentence?

The folks that arrested the victim appear not to be the officers charged with homicide. Presumably the prosecutor contends that he was not injured by those officers.

Would you have police officers thrown in prison for years because they misidentified the type of knife that results in an offence for which a person can be arrested?

Does anyone expect officers to be able to distinguish with accuracy what sort of knives make a person arrestable?

I'd say the chief should tell them not to make the mistake again and send them out to do their jobs.

The only event that appears to have any seriousness to it is the one that involves the victim sustaining a mortal injury. The claim seems to be that this occurred in the van.

How a prosecutor is going to prove mens rea by the van driver is beyond me. Apparently the prosecutor agrees that the victim was feigning injury when being placed in the van. I predict the van driver will say that he presumed the victim was continuing to feign injury while he was driving the victim to his destination. And that the victim must, in fact, have been injured before he entered the van, as he appeared to be in the video clips.

It is possible that this young prosecutor rushed to a decision under political pressure to lower community tension.


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Re: Prosecutor charges 6 Baltimore officers in Gray's death
By: clo
in ALEA
Sat, 02 May 15 1:36 AM
Msg. 16865 of 54959

If its proven they arrested him without cause, that will be the nail in their coffin, so to speak. I bet that will add years to their sentences.

According to Mosby's narrative, the incident began when two police officers on bike patrol "made eye contact" with Gray, who then began to run.

Officers caught up to him, he surrendered and was placed on the ground, arms handcuffed behind his back. He said he couldn't breathe and asked for an inhaler, "to no avail," Mosby said.

Although police found a knife in Mosby's pants, it was a variety allowed by Maryland law, and police had no reason to detain him, the prosecutors said. Still, they called for a police transport van to take him away.

Once the van arrived, officers loaded him into the van, headfirst and on his stomach, with his hands cuffed and ankles shackled. They did not put a seat belt on him as required by department policy, Mosby said. 

Goodson stopped the van repeatedly to check on Gray, and at one point picked up another man who was put in the back of the van on the other side of the partition that keeps prisoners separated.

Donta Allen, the second prisoner in the van, told CNN's Don Lemon that a report saying he had told investigators that Gray was trying to hurt himself during the trip was "untrue -- very, very, very untrue. I haven't talked to no investigators. ... The only person I talked to was homicide."

Allen told Lemon that a separate report of Gray being irate and screaming in the van was "absolutely untrue. ... Never heard him (Gray). The only thing that I heard was a little banging, like he, I thought he was banging, someone was over there banging their head or something."

Mosby said Goodson and other officers who saw Gray's condition failed to get him medical help, despite his requests, until arrival at the Western District Police Station.

By then, Mosby said, he was no longer breathing.

Mosby called the officer's actions "grossly negligent." 


Gray was rushed to a University of Maryland medical facility where he underwent surgery. He died a week later.

Mosby, who has a rich family history in law enforcement, said it was important not to paint the entire police department as villains.

"I can tell you that the actions of these officers will not and should not in any way damage the important working relationships between police and prosecutors as we continue to fight together to reduce crime in Baltimore."

And she called on protesters to remain peaceful in the wake of the announcement.

"This is a moment. This is your moment," she said, addressing the city's youth. "Let's ensure that we have peaceful and productive rallies that will develop structural and systemic changes for generations to come.

"To the people of Baltimore and demonstrators across America, 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."

Protests were scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Baltimore, as well as in cities across the country.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/01/us/freddie-gray-baltimore-death/index.html


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