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Tag: riot
#EndorseThis: David Alan Grier Helps You Identify A Riot

#EndorseThis: David Alan Grier Helps You Identify A Riot

Actor David Alan Grier teamed with Funny or Die to shoot a PSA to help people distinguish a riot from a protest.

“TIKI torches and khaki pants: that’s not a riot. Looks like there’s a sale on at the local Tommy Bahama,” the former In Living Color star explained, referring to the Unite the Right neo-Nazis in Charlottesville. “But Black people: we are scary. And when we all get together then we’re probably planning to do something extra-scary: we’re planning to riot.”

Baltimore Police Give Findings Into Freddie Gray Death To Prosecutor

Baltimore Police Give Findings Into Freddie Gray Death To Prosecutor

By Timothy M. Phelps and Michael Muskal, Tribune Washington Bureau (TNS)

BALTIMORE — Baltimore police turned over their findings into the death of Freddie Gray to the state prosecutor on Thursday, a day earlier than their self-imposed deadline.

The results of the investigation were sent to State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby on Thursday morning, Police Commissioner Anthony Batts announced.

“We have exhausted every lead at this point. But this does not mean the investigation is over,” he said.

The action comes amid published reports of a new narrative suggesting that Gray intentionally tried to injure himself as he was being transported in a police van.

The 25-year-old African-American died from a severed spine on April 19, a week after he was arrested by Baltimore police and transported by van. Police are investigating how Gray, who was cuffed with his hands behind his back and his legs in irons, was injured.

The police findings into the death, which has led to days of protests and a fevered Monday night of rioting and looting, were scheduled to be completed by Friday, but were completed early.

The state’s attorney has the final say on whether to charge any of the six officers with a state crime. The officers have been suspended with pay.

“By turning these documents, our findings, over to the state’s attorney’s office as quickly as we can, we are being accountable to them so that we can be accountable to the public,” spokesman Captain Eric Kowalczyk said Wednesday.

Police have already acknowledged that department policy was breached when Gray was placed in the van but not buckled into a seat belt and when officers failed to get him medical care in a timely fashion. The federal Justice Department is also investigating whether there were any violations of federal civil rights law.

Police have said that the van stopped three times while carrying Gray to a police precinct. At one stop, Gray was taken from the van and placed in irons. At the last stop, another inmate was also placed in the van but was separated from Gray by a metal barrier.

According to The Washington Post, the prisoner sharing the police van told investigators that he could hear Gray “banging against the walls” of the vehicle and believed that he “was intentionally trying to injure himself.”

The Post quoted from what it said was a Baltimore police document that was included in an application for a search warrant, which is sealed by the court. The Post said it was given the document under the condition that the prisoner not be named because the person who provided it feared for the inmate’s safety.

The document offers the first official look at what happened in the van. Baltimore police have said they do not know whether Gray was injured during the arrest or during his ride in the van.

Gray was found unconscious in the wagon when it arrived at a police station on April 12, then taken to a hospital, where he died in a coma a week later.

Jason Downs, one of the attorneys for the Gray family, told the Post that the family had not been told of the prisoner’s comments to investigators.

“We disagree with any implication that Freddie Gray severed his own spinal cord,” Downs said. “We question the accuracy of the police reports we’ve seen thus far, including the police report that says Mr. Gray was arrested without force or incident.”

Photo: Vladimir Badikov via Flickr

Baltimore Calmer After Night Under Curfew; Schools Reopen

Baltimore Calmer After Night Under Curfew; Schools Reopen

By Noah Bierman, Michael Muskal, and W.J. Hennigan, Los Angeles Times (TNS)

BALTIMORE — A yellow school bus rumbling through a smattering of downtown traffic was a welcome sign of progress Wednesday morning as this riot-scarred city tried to return to normal after this week’s violence and looting.

No major incidents were reported overnight as a weeklong 10 p.m. curfew took hold and seemed to break city’s fevered response to the death of Freddie Gray, an African American who suffered a mortal injury while in police custody.

Ten people were arrested overnight, police said, two for looting, one for disorderly conduct and seven for violating the curfew. That was in addition to 235 arrests after Monday’s rioting that began hours after Gray’s funeral.

“Tonight I think the biggest thing is the citizens are safe, the city is stable,” Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said shortly before midnight as he declared the curfew a success. “We hope to maintain it that way.”

More than 3,000 officers and National Guard troops enforced the curfew, which got off to a slow start late Tuesday night when about 200 protesters ignored police warnings and the pleas of community activists to disperse. Some threw objects.

A line of police behind riot shields hurled tear gas canisters and fired pepper balls, slowly pushing back the crowd. Demonstrators picked up the canisters and hurled them back at officers. But the crowd rapidly dispersed and was down to just a few dozen people within minutes.

More than 20 police officers were injured in the past days, officials said.

The curfew ended at 5 a.m. and the city attempted to return to its pre-riot routines. Traffic resumed, but against a heavy show of National Guard, city police, and law enforcement officers from surrounding cities.

At North and Pennsylvania avenues, one of the centers of unrest, traffic moved as usual and residents went about their business as police in riot gear stood on each of the four corners.

“Things need to get back to normal,” said one police officer, who was not authorized to speak publicly on the situation. “That’s what’s starting to happen.”

About half a mile away the Mondawmin Mall, where rioters looted thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise on Monday, remained closed due to extensive damage during the unrest. Camouflaged Maryland National Guardsmen watched over each of the entrances.

However, the Shoppers Food and Pharmacy, which shares a parking lot with the mall, was open for business. And across the street, students entered Frederick Douglass High School after classes were canceled Tuesday.

“It’s good to move past all this,” said Robert Johnson, 50, who works at Shoppers. “There’s enough confusion in the world. We don’t need this madness.”

School buses were among the earliest vehicles on the roads. Like much of the city, schools were shuttered Tuesday. Educators said they were planning special programs.

“Principals and teachers are planning activities that will help students learn from the past days’ events. Counselors, social workers, and psychologists will be on hand to support students’ emotional needs,” the district’s executive officer, Gregory E. Thornton, said in a letter to parents.

Other usual city activities were also planned but with a special twist because of the days of protests.

The Baltimore Orioles were scheduled to play a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox after two previous games were postponed. But in what is believed to be a first in the history of the sport, Wednesday’s game will be played to an empty stadium. As a security measure, the afternoon game will be closed to the public.

On Tuesday, top officials including Governor Larry Hogan and Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake worked to calm the city, which has been in turmoil since Gray died on April 19, a week after he was arrested in West Baltimore, which became the epicenter of the riots and looting.

Gray’s spine was severed, but it remains a mystery exactly how and when that occurred. Video has shown Gray being arrested and his hands cuffed behind his back when he is placed in the van for transport. The van made at least two stops and at one, Gray is seen on video being taken out of the van. His legs are placed in irons and he is returned to the wagon.

Officials are still investigating the events, but police have acknowledged that Gray should have been buckled into a seat belt as he was transported and that he should have received early medical care.

Gray’s death touched off protests last week that increased in intensity through the weekend and finally into Monday night’s violence.

Photo: Yianni Mathioudakis via Flickr

FBI Will Also Investigate Fatal Police Shooting Of St. Louis Teen

FBI Will Also Investigate Fatal Police Shooting Of St. Louis Teen

By Matt Pearce and Maya Srikrishnan, Los Angeles Times

FERGUSON, Mo. — Hundreds of protesters converged outside the Ferguson Police Department in Missouri on Monday, chanting “Hands up! Don’t shoot!” with their arms in the air after a night of violence when a vigil for an unarmed black teenager who was fatally shot by police in a St. Louis suburb turned into vandalism and looting.

A line of mostly white police in riot gear guarded the station as the mostly black demonstrators held up signs and marched in the street, calling for accountability in the death of Michael Brown, 18. The march was largely peaceful, but at least five people were arrested after they apparently refused to follow police orders to disperse.

Derek Laney, 49, traveled from nearby St. Louis to demonstrate, saying the death of young black men was an epidemic. Whatever Brown did, he said, was “not punishable by execution in the streets,” and he somewhat defended the melee that broke store windows.

“People are angry, people are hurt, people are fed up. You have to direct it somewhere — and you can’t direct it at the people who made you angry because they’ll shoot you and kill you,” Laney said. “So they express it outward. … I wouldn’t go out and smash things, I wouldn’t go out and burn things. But I understand why people do it.”

The protesters said they want the officer who killed Brown to be identified, fired, and charged in the killing and they want the Ferguson police force to reflect the racial demographic of the largely African-American community.

The continued demonstrations came as St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar told reporters that the FBI will conduct a parallel investigation to his county police investigation. Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson said that he welcomed the move and called the Sunday night violence “a terrible tragedy … We want to heal. We want to build trust with the community.”

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. has asked the Department of Justice’s civil rights attorneys to “monitor” the situation in Missouri to see whether the youth’s civil rights were violated either in his contact with local police or the shooting itself, federal law enforcement officials said.

Federal officials added that any federal civil rights probe would be part of the review by the local FBI field office, and that any actions taken by federal authorities would be separate from what state prosecutors might do.

St. Louis County police said two officers were injured Sunday night — one was hit by a brick and one suffered knee injuries. Police arrested 32 people overnight on suspicion of theft, assault, or burglary. Police say that protesters marched to the Quiktrip late Sunday, looted it and set it on fire. At least 12 businesses were vandalized and looted.

Officer Brian Schellman said the overnight situation was “scary” during an interview with KDSK-TV, the local NBC affiliate, Monday morning. He said officers were dressed in riot gear when they exited their patrol vehicles, and were immediately bombarded with rocks, bricks, and bottles.

Schellman said one police officer was shot at, but he was not injured. A shot was also fired at a police helicopter circling the area.

Anonymous, a group of “Hacktivists,” hacked the city of Ferguson’s website Sunday night, according to KMOV-TV, the local CBS affiliate.

Officials told the television station that the city’s emails were not working Monday morning. Anticipating a problem, the mayor of Ferguson had the IT Department take down all personnel information from the site on Saturday.

On Sunday, “Operation Ferguson” tweeted that Anonymous would launch cyberattacks in Ferguson only in direct response to any police abuse of protesters. “Operation Ferguson” has since been suspended from Twitter.

A local school district canceled the first day of school Monday, saying it was concerned for student safety in the wake of Sunday night’s violence.

“Safety is our uppermost concern,” the Jennings school district release said. “At this time we do not feel it’s safe for our students to walk to school.”

Jerryl Christmas, 50, a defense attorney and former prosecutor for the city of St. Louis, watched from the sidewalk Monday morning in a bright striped tie, holding a small bullhorn.

“We’re (the black community) not part of the system. Look out here right now,” Christmas said, gesturing to the line of white police officers in riot gear. “The lack of black police officers either on the street or at the administrative level. … This whole area, this city is a racial powder keg.”

Christmas said he was disturbed about photos he saw of Brown’s body lying in the street for hours. “Not covering that body — when I got the picture on my phone, I couldn’t believe it. … The message I got from that was, you cross us, you die. They treated that child like road kill.”

Shortly before noon, as the crowd started to lose some energy, police expanded their line of officers around the police station, riling up the protesters again, who debated over whether to stay and confront the police.

One younger man took a bullhorn and pleaded for the demonstrators to avoid arrests so they could attend more protests. “This is our time!” the young man shouted into the bullhorn. “Our grandparents and parents were attacked by (police) dogs, fire hoses. This is our time to do it the way they did it — nonviolently!”

The NAACP released a statement Monday morning saying state and local branches would seek answers about the shooting of Brown and the national office would monitor the situation.

“The death of yet another African-American at the hands of those sworn to protect and serve the community where he lived is heartbreaking,” National Association for the Advancement of Colored People President Cornell Williams Brooks said in the statement. “Michael Brown was preparing to begin college, and now his family is preparing to bury their child — his life cut short in a tragic encounter with the police.”

“Even as we call for accountability by those charged with protecting the community, we call on the community to act — collectively and calmly until we secure justice for the family of Michael Brown,” the statement said.

Mourners placed candles, flowers, and a teddy bear where Brown was killed Sunday night, The Associated Press reported, and some youths spray-painted “R.I.P. Michael” on the street.

But then the mood turned ugly. Television footage showed people vandalizing police cars, kicking in store windows, and carrying out goods, including bottles of alcohol. At least one large fire was reported.

“Right now, the small group of people are creating a huge mess,” Ferguson Mayor James Knowles told Fox 2 KTVI-TV. “Contributing to the unrest that is going on is not going to help. … We’re only hurting ourselves, only hurting our community, hurting our neighbors.”

In a televised interview Monday, Knowles pledged that “justice will be served” and that he wants the people of Ferguson to “have faith in the process.”

On Sunday morning, Belmar said the unarmed Brown had been struggling for a Ferguson police officer’s gun in a patrol car before he was killed. Brown was shot multiple times Saturday afternoon in the confrontation with the police officer.

Witnesses have said the youth had his hands in the air as he fled the patrol car.

AFP Photo/Whitney Curtis

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