2015 Baltimore protests
On April 12, 2015, Baltimore Police Department officers arrested Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old African American resident of Baltimore, Maryland. Gray's neck and spine were injured while he was in a police vehicle and he went into a coma. On April 18, there were protests in front of the Western district police station. Gray died on April 19.
Further protests were organized after Gray's death became public knowledge, amid the police department's continuing inability to adequately or consistently explain the events following the arrest and the injuries. Spontaneous protests started after the funeral service, although several included violent elements. Civil unrest continued with at least twenty police officers injured, at least 250 people arrested, 285 to 350 businesses damaged, 150 vehicle fires, 60 structure fires, 27 drugstores looted, thousands of police and Maryland National Guard troops deployed, and with a state of emergency declared in the city limits of Baltimore. The state of emergency was lifted on May 6. The series of protests took place against a historical backdrop of racial and poverty issues in Baltimore.
On May 1, 2015, Gray's death was ruled by the medical examiner to be a homicide. Six officers were charged with various offenses, including second-degree murder, in connection with Gray's death. Three officers were subsequently acquitted; in July 2016, following the acquittals, Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby dropped charges against the remaining three officers.
Events
April 12: Gray's arrest
On April 12, 2015, Freddie Carlos Gray Jr., a 25-year-old African-American man, was arrested by the Baltimore City Police Department for possession of a “switchblade”, in the 1700 block of Presbury Street in the Sandtown-Winchester neighbourhood. Two weeks later, State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby stated that Gray had been carrying a legal pocketknife, not an illegal switchblade as alleged by police. However, court opinions later recognized the knife as being a spring-assisted knife and that the police officers correctly identified it as illegal under the Baltimore City Code, including in an officers' defamation suit filed against Mosby. Gray was seen to be in good health at the time of the arrest.While being transported in a police van, Gray sustained injuries to his neck, including his vocal box and spinal cord. He fell into a coma and was taken to a trauma center. The BCPD could not immediately account for the injuries and released contradictory and inconsistent information regarding the timeline of the arrest, transportation and whether Gray had received appropriately prompt medical treatment. On May 23, 2016, officer Edward Nero was found not guilty of all charges against him in connection with the death of Freddie Gray. Shortly after that, the remaining officers who had not yet stood trial had all charges against them dropped.
April 18–24: Protests begin
On April 18, 2015, immediately outside the Western District police station, hundreds of Baltimore citizens protested against the apparent mistreatment of Freddie Gray as well against inadequate and inconsistent information on police actions during the arrest and transport. Gray died at approximately 7am on April 19, 2015. Later that day, in response to Gray's death, Baltimore City Police Commissioner, Anthony Batts said, "I extend my deepest sympathies to his family" while also saying, "All Lives Matter" in a nod to the "Black Lives Matter" mantra shouted at protests.Protests continued during six nights in Baltimore's streets. On April 21, 2015, the Baltimore City Police Department released the identities of the six officers involved in Gray's arrest. That evening, protesters marched from the site of Gray's arrest to the Western District police station. On April 23, two people were arrested. Tensions flared, but according to the Baltimore City Police Department, the remaining protesters that day were peaceful. On April 24, a coalition of organizations including the ACLU, the NAACP, CASA de Maryland, and Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle requested Governor Larry Hogan to act and address issues of police brutality.
April 25: Violence escalates
On April 25, 2015, protests were organized in downtown Baltimore. Protesters marched from the Baltimore City Hall to the Inner Harbor. After the final stage of the official protest event, some people became violent, damaging at least five police vehicles and pelting police with rocks. Near Oriole Park at Camden Yards, some groups of violent protesters also smashed storefronts and fought with baseball fans arriving at the stadium for a scheduled game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Red Sox. As a result of the violence, those attending the baseball game were forced to remain inside the stadium for their safety. At least 34 people were arrested during the riots, and six police officers were injured.J.M. Giordano, a photographer for Baltimore City Paper, was taking pictures of the protest when he was "swarmed" and beaten by two police officers in riot gear. Sait Serkan Gurbuz, a Reuters photographer with visible press credentials, who photographed the scuffle from a public sidewalk, was tackled, handcuffed and walked to the Western District station. He was cited for failure to obey and later released. Subsequently, City Paper published a video on its website documenting the violence.
During a press conference, Baltimore mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said, "most protesters were respectful but a small group of agitators intervened". She also stated that "It's a very delicate balancing act. Because while we try to make sure that they were protected from the cars and other things that were going on, we also gave those who wished to destroy space to do that as well. And we worked very hard to keep that balance and to put ourselves in the best position to de-escalate." The phrase "we also gave those who wished to destroy space to do that as well" was interpreted by some conservative-leaning news sources as an indication that the mayor was giving permission to protesters to destroy property.
Two days later, the mayor's Director of Strategic Planning and Policy, Howard Libit, released a statement clarifying the mayor's remarks:
April 27
Funeral
A funeral service was held for Freddie Gray at the New Shiloh Baptist Church on April 27 at , after a one-hour public viewing. A large attendance included civil rights leaders, families of other people killed by police, and politicians including Congressman Elijah Cummings, Cabinet Secretary Broderick Johnson, White House adviser Heather Foster, and Elias Alcantara of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.Gray is buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in Baltimore County, Maryland.
Preemptive actions
A photograph of the April 25 protesters standing on a Baltimore police car was superimposed with the text "All HighSchools Monday @3 We Are Going To Purge From Mondawmin To The Ave, Back To Downtown #Fdl" and distributed on social media and as flyers. In response, Mondawmin Mall was closed at 2:15 p.m. and police in riot gear were deployed to the area. In preparation for the 'purge' police shut down the Mondawmin metro stop and also blockaded many of the nearby streets. As a result, students from Frederick Douglass High School, which is across the street from Mondawmin Mall, had considerable difficulty leaving the area via public transportation when their classes ended an hour after the "purge" began, and contributed to the swelling crowd.According to eyewitness reports, expecting the "purge" to start at 3 p.m., Baltimore police pre-emptively de-boarded all buses going through the area, shut down the nearby Mondawmin Metro station and cordoned off the area around the mall. Eyewitnesses saw police detain students in that general area. The police, in full riot gear, detained the students for a full half-hour before the first brick was thrown. Meghann Harris, a teacher in the Baltimore school system, said on Facebook, "If I were a Douglass student that just got trapped in the middle of a minefield BY cops without any way to get home and completely in harm's way, I'd be ready to pop off, too."
Other closings in preparation or response to the riot included the University of Maryland Baltimore, which closed its campus in downtown Baltimore at citing a police warning regarding "activities may be potentially violent and UMB could be in the path of any violence", Baltimore City Community College, Coppin State University, the Lexington Market, the National Aquarium, and the Enoch Pratt Free Library system. The Baltimore Kinetic Sculpture Race was rescheduled from May 2 to June 14. A Baltimore Orioles baseball game against the Chicago White Sox scheduled for the evening at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, and the first of a three-game series, was also postponed due to the unrest.
Spread of violence
Initially 75–100 people who appeared to be high school students began throwing bricks and bottles at police near Mondawmin Mall after police refused high school students access to their primary means of getting home, while ordering them to disperse and go home. The violence rapidly spread, and by later that day two patrol cars were destroyed and fifteen officers were injured. A police cruiser was destroyed, and some officers suffered broken bones. A CVS Pharmacy location in West Baltimore was looted and burned by rioters; no one in the CVS was hurt because employees had been evacuated before the CVS was looted and burned. In East Baltimore, the Mary Harvin Senior Center, an under-construction senior housing and services project, burned to the ground; it was rebuilt and opened in April 2016.April 28
Morning
At about , firefighters extinguished flames and helped residents cleaning up after the overnight rioting. Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 175th Infantry Regiment, Maryland Army National Guard arrived in Baltimore to provide security to vital infrastructure and to give additional support to police. At about , the Baltimore mayor's office reported that there were 144 vehicle fires, 15 structural fires, and nearly 200 arrests. One person had been badly hurt due to an arson.At , it was announced that Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan was temporarily moving his office from Annapolis to Baltimore and that Hogan would visit scenes around Baltimore. At approximately 9:00 a.m., Hogan visited an intersection on West Baltimore that was heavily affected by the rioting with damaged vehicles and a looted convenience store, thanking those in the area for help cleaning up the streets.
In one incident that went viral during the previous night, Baltimore mother, Toya Graham, repeatedly struck and berated her son on TV for throwing rocks at police. Graham stated that she didn't want her son to end up like Freddie Gray, but also that he shouldn't seek justice by rioting. At on April 28, Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts praised Graham, stating, "I wish I had more parents that took charge of their kids out there."
Baltimore County police spokesman Cpl. John Wachter also announced that Security Square Mall was going to be closed for the rest of the day following the spreading of rumours that planned actions were going to occur there. The Social Security Administration and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services also closed.