WATCH: Marilyn J. Mosby lists all the charges 6 police officers will face in Freddie Gray death
Freddie Gray’s death on April 19, a week after being illegally arrested for carrying a knife, has been deemed a homicide.
State Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby announced charges against six officers during a press conference Friday and laid out, in more detail than has been reported thus far, exactly what’s believed to have happened.
Here’s what happened
It started between 8:45 a.m. and 9:15 near the corner of North Avenue and Mount Street in Baltimore city when Lt. Brian Rice, Officer Garrett Miller, and Officer Edward Nero “make eye contact” with Gray.
Gray ran.
He was caught near the 1700 block of Presberry Street and surrendered to the three officers who placed him in a prone position with his arms handcuffed behind his back.
“It was at this time that Mr. Gray indicated that he could not breathe and requested an inhaler to no avail,” Mosby said.
They moved him into a seated position and found a knife with the blade folded into the handle, clipped onto the inside of his pants pocket. Mosby was clear that this knife was legal in the state of Maryland. The officers took the knife and placed it onto the sidewalk.
The officers put him back on the ground.
“Mr. Gray was then placed back down on his stomach, at which time Mr. Gray began to flail his legs and scream as Officer Miller placed Mr. Gray in a restraining technique known as a leg lace while Officer Nero physically held him down against his will until a BPD wagon arrived to transport Mr. Gray.”
The van arrives
The police wagon, driven by Officer Eduardo Goodson, arrived and parked a few metres from the site where Gray was arrested. Rice, Miller, and Nero loaded Gray into the back of the van, leaving him unrestrained, contrary to police policy, Mosby said.
The first stop and the injury
The van stopped for the first time after loading Gray near Baker Street where the three officers took Gray out of the van and put flex cuffs on his wrist and leg shackles around his ankles. They then loaded him back into the van on his stomach, head first, and on the floor, again, improperly leaving him without restraints.
Rice then ordered Goodson to take Gray to the Central Booking and Intake Facility.
“Following transport from Baker Street, Mr. Gray suffered a severe and critical neck injury as a result of being handcuffed, shackled by his feet, and unrestrained inside the BPD wagon.”
WATCH: State Attorney claims Freddie Gray arrested illegally, details injury
The second stop
The van stopped again a short distance away from Baker Street near the corner of Mosher Street and Fremont Avenue where Goodson got out and walked to the back of the van to check on Gray – but did nothing to help him, Mosby said.
“Despite stopping for the purpose of checking on Mr. Gray’s condition, at no point did he seek nor did he render any medical assistance for Mr. Gray,” Mosby said.
The third stop
On his way to the booking facility, Goodson stopped the van again and called for additional units to help him check on Gray near Dolphin Street and Druid Hill Avenue. He was met by Officer William Porter who checked on Gray.
“Mr. Gray at that time requested help and indicated that he could not breathe. Officer Porter asked Mr. Gray if he needed a medic, at which time Mr. Gray indicated, at least twice, that he was in need of a medic.”
He was not given a medic. He was moved from the floor to the bench, but again, left without a seatbelt on.
Officer Porter was then called to help with an arrest near 1600 West North Avenue in Baltimore, close to the spot where Gray was originally arrested. Porter went and Goodson followed.
The fourth stop
“Despite Mr. Gray’s obvious and recognized need for medical assistance, Officer Goodson in a grossly negligent manner chose to respond to the 1600 block of west North Avenue with Mr. Gray still unsecured by a seatbelt in the wagon,” Mosby said.
Lt. Rice, Officer Miller, Porter and Sgt. Alicia White were all at the second arrest site. White had, in fact, been investigating citizen complaints about Gray’s arrest and checked on the man still unrestrained in the back of the van.
White saw Gray “unresponsive on the floor of the wagon,” Mosby said and speaking to the back of his head, tried to get his attention.
“When he did not respond, she did nothing further despite the fact that she was advised that he needed a medic. She made no effort to look or assess or determine his condition. Despite Mr. Gray’s seriously deteriorating medical condition no medical assistance was rendered or summoned for Mr. Gray at that time by any officer.”
The second prisoner was loaded into the van and Goodson departed, again, for the booking facility.
The last stop: Gray finally gets medical attention
It wasn’t until the van stopped at the Western District Police Station, and the second prisoner was unloaded, that the officers called for medical attention.
“Mr. Gray was no longer breathing at all,” Mosby said the officers discovered when they tried to take him out of the van.
They called a paramedic.
“Whereupon arrival, a medic determined that Mr. Gray was now in cardiac arrest and was critically and severely injured.”
Gray was then taken to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma unit where he underwent surgery and died a week later.
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