Freddie Gray Case Ends With Final Charges Dropped, Zero Guilty Findings For Officers

BALTIMORE, MD — Prosecutors dropped all charges against the remaining officers who were to stand trial in the death of Freddie Gray, clearing three indicted in the in-custody death that set off days of riots across the city in 2015 and put the spotlight on tensions between police and the community.

Gray was arrested on April 12, 2015, after making eye contact with a lieutenant and running. He died a week later from what prosecutors alleged were spinal injuries suffered in a Baltimore Police Department van.

After the funeral for 25-year-old Gray, riots erupted in parts of the city, requiring the National Guard to help quell the unrest. Days later, State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced charges against six officers.

The announcement that charges would be dropped came Wednesday morning, when a judge was to hear pretrial motions in the case of Officer Garrett Miller in Baltimore City Circuit Court.

"As a chief prosecutor elected by the citizens of Baltimore, I must consider the dismal likelihood of conviction at this point, the judicial economy in proceeding further and the divisive impact that continuing this prosecution could potentially have on our community," Mosby said at a press conference Wednesday morning.

The trial for Miller, the officer who took Gray into custody, involved charges of second-degree assault, two counts of misconduct in office and reckless endangerment.

His case was coming after three policeman — Officer Edward Nero, Lt. Brian Rice and Officer Caesar Goodson — were acquitted in the last two months at bench trials with Judge Barry Williams presiding.

"In light of these consistent outcomes, the likelihood of the remaining defendants' decisions to elect a bench trial with this very same judge is highly probable and unfortunately, so is the outcome," Mosby said.

Baltimore's mayor said that it was a "wise decision" not to proceed with the police trials and stated: "Justice is not a verdict; it's a process," in an interview on CNN.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, who has been serving at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, said of the trials in Baltimore: "The judge has found in the past that the cases were thin."

Those representing the police echoed the sentiment regarding the solidity of the cases against the officers.

"The state's attorney simply could not accept the evidence as presented," Fraternal Order of Police President Gene Ryan said in a press conference Wednesday afternoon. "She had her own agenda." He said that four of the officers have returned to duty and the other two should be back shortly.

Miller, who was a bicycle officer patrolling the Penn North area the day Gray was arrested, had been called to testify in the other cases; leading up to his own trial, his attorneys had requested a hearing regarding the immunity he was promised by the state. That issue was to be reviewed in court Wednesday, as was a request that the grand jury testimony be unsealed to determine whether his right to due process was violated after allegations surfaced that the assistant state's attorney provided a script to the detective who testified before a grand jury.

Instead of discussing the pending motions, prosecutors on Wednesday announced that they would be dropping the charges against the officers who have not yet been tried.

In addition to Miller, two other officers had upcoming trial dates — Sgt. Alicia White and Officer William Porter, whose case was heard in December and ended with a hung jury, resulting in a mistrial.

"After much thought and prayer, it has become clear to me that...we could try this case 100 times and cases just like it, and we would still end up with the same result," Mosby said. "Accordingly, I have decided not to proceed in the cases against officer Garrett [Miller], Sgt. Alicia White or to re-litigate the case against William Porter..."

Addressing the failure to gain convictions, Mosby said there was a need for "real substantive reforms to the current criminal justice system," namely an outside agency to investigate police cases and prosecutorial participation in determining whether a judge or jury will preside over trials. She did say that she respected the determinations in the cases.

"As officers of the court, we must respect the verdicts rendered by the judge regarding the ultimate culpability of the adjudicated officers involving Freddie Gray's death as final, no matter how much we may disagree with his rulings," Mosby said. "We do not believe that Freddie Gray killed himself."

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