Baltimore in Chaos - Marilyn Mosby takes charge

"To the people of Baltimore and demonstrators across America, I heard your call for 'No Justice, No peace,' " Mosby said. "Your peace is sincerely needed as I work to deliver justice on behalf of this young man." Marilyn Mosby

Marilyn Mosby Baltimore prosecutor

Finally! Somebody has taken charge of the chaos in Baltimore following the murder of the young black man, Freddie Gray. Somebody had to step up!  Thankfully, it took the guts of a young 
and Black city prosecutor to rise to this challenge. 

Marilyn Mosby has taken the reigns from Baltimore City's Mayor Stephanie  Rawlings-Blake. The mayor, sadly, has been as ineffective as a proverbial deer caught in he headlights, by her lack of emotion and lethargic response to the growing racial crises, post the police brutality killing of Freddie Gray. Meanwhile, Maryland's Governor Larry Hogan has behaved like a used car salesman, waiting for the bank to call him with a customer's loan approval. He talks a lot, but has nothing to contribute to the crises, except rhetoric.  Obviously, Rawlings Blake and Hogan do not communicate.

So, how's Maryland's Republican Governor going to fulfill his campaign promise to Maryland's voters, now that the state's largest city and economic engine is in a meltdown? Who's going to present the Woodlawn Trophy at the Preakness Race, the second leg of the Triple Crown?  Who's going to build Baltimore back to become the state's economic engine, when at least 20 percent of the city is trashed and burned?

Moreover, Governor Hogan hid in the equivalent of an emergency bomb shelter when he told the news media how he waited for Rawlings-Blake to call him before enacting the state's National Guard. Otherwise, if he'd waited any longer to declare the emergency, the burning of Baltimore would've turned the city into matchsticks. Then, like a rerun of the movie "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", former Governor and Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley shows, up after cancelling speeches in Europe, because he wanted to walk the streets of the burned out city.....and do what? It's like Rawlings-Blake, Hogan and O'Malley are all looking for two "big W's", meaning "who is responsible for this chaos?" and "what happened that I can blame on somebody else?".

Except, this Baltimore tragedy isn't a parody. Rather, it's frighteningly real.  

For a fact, Freddie Gray did not deserve to die. 

There's nothing in the universe of possibilities that caused Gray to deserve to have his neck broken and his spine severed during an arrest, without cause.

So, here's what the Baltimore City Attorney Marilyn Mosby said:

Freddie Gray death ruled homicide; officers charged

By Michael Pearson, Ben Brumfield and Eliott C. McLaughlin, CNN
Six Baltimore police officers will face charges in the death of Freddie Gray, the city's prosecutor said Friday in an unexpected announcement that brought cheers from protesters and words of protest from the police union.

The announcement by Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby left no doubt about what she thinks happened April 12, when Gray was arrested: The 25-year-old died, she said, after suffering "a severe and critical neck injury" while being transported "handcuffed, shackled by his feet and unrestrained" inside a police van. It is against police policy to transport a prisoner without proper restraints such as a seat belt.

BALTIMORE — Baltimore’s chief prosecutor (Marilyn Mosby) charged six police officers on Friday with crimes including murder and manslaughter in the arrest and fatal injury of Freddie Gray, a striking and surprisingly swift turn in a case that has drawn national attention to police conduct.

The state’s attorney for Baltimore, Marilyn J. Mosby, filed the charges almost as soon as she received a medical examiner’s report that ruled Mr. Gray’s death a homicide, and a day after the police concluded their initial investigation and handed over their findings. Officials had cautioned that it could take considerable time for her office to complete its own investigation and decide whether to prosecute.

Five of the six officers are in custody, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said later.

Mosby said Gray suffered fatal spinal injuries on April 12,while being transported in a police van, where he was taken because he was somehow involved in a yet to be fully explained incident.

The most serious charges were brought against Officer Caesar Goodson, who was driving the transport van that brought Mr. Gray to the Western District police station after his April 12, arrest. Mr. Goodson, 45 years old, was charged with second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter and other charges.

Officers William Porter, 25, Lt. Brian Rice, 41, and Sgt. Alicia White, 30, were each charged with involuntary manslaughter, second-degree assault and misconduct in office. Officers Edward Nero, 29, and Garrett Miller, 26, were charged with second-degree assault and misconduct in office. (News is reporting the charged police officers were released on bail on Saturday May 2nd).

It's unclear how Mosby's firm response to the homicide of Freddie Gray will impact Baltimore's violence and demonstrations, but she certainly has put a sense of awe into the city.  

Who could have guessed that a young Black woman (35 years old) would be so decisive? She's especially riveting, when contrasted against Rawlings-Blake, Hogan and O'Malley, who acted like movie stars in a grade B-movie rehearsal. Thankfully, Mosby finally took charge of the entire saga.  

By "throwing the book" at the six police involved in the killing, Mosby knows the charges must be given due process and those officers have seen their jobs disappear, forever.