Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (R) and Police Commissioner Anthony Batts (Photo : REUTERS/James Lawler Duggan)
Freddie Gray, a Baltimore man who was arrested by the police on Apr. 12 near Gilmore Homes in Sandtown-Winchester due to suspicious behavior since he fled when he the police who approached him.
Gray died due to spinal trauma when he suffered from a broken vertebra during the arrest, as reported by NBC News.
Relatives and activists have started protesting and Baltimore officials have called in for an investigation to find out the reasons for Gray's death. The Gray family's lawyer Billy Murphy stated that 80 percent of Gray's spine was severed during the encounter. Murphy stated that Gray lapsed into a coma and underwent extensive surgery to save his life, but he died after seven days. He also stated that Gray was healthy before the arrest and the police chased him without any evidence and arrested him for a crime, according to CNN News.
Police have declined to speak about the case, stating that administrative and a criminal investigation is taking place. Murphy stated that police is keeping the circumstances of Gray's death as a secret till the time they can develop a version of their own to help them shake off the problem.
The incident report and the names of the officers involved have not been released. The police stated that they have been placed on administrative duties. Capt. Eric Kowalczyk from Baltimore Police Department stated that the officers who arrested Gray were deployed in an area known for violent crimes and drug sales, when they encountered Gray for the first time he fled which made them suspicious.
Gray's death is one of the many recent death incidents which involved white officers and black suspects. His date has sparked a debate over race and policing.
