THE NEW CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT


My favorite story from Greek mythology is the birth of Athena. It seems she “leaped from Zeus’ head, fully grown and armed, with a shout — and pealed to the broad sky her clarion cry of war.” See Wikipedia at this website for a great deal more information about Athena and Zeus. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athena. Her cult is thought to have originated in libya, moving from there to Crete before the classical Greek culture took her in as one of their goddesses. She is almost certainly the most talented and powerful of the Greek goddesses.

About eight months ago in Ferguson, MO, a police killing – a not uncommon event – generated seemingly suddenly –as with Athena and her birth, sometimes peaceful and sometimes violent street activity. It immediately hit the Internet and young politically involved blacks and whites converged on Ferguson. The result is the apparently endless list of other cities who are still having these unfortunate police involved deaths, and usually for no criminal activity that would result in a court decision of the death penalty. Their crime was punished on the streets by police officers, who then gave an excuse like “I feared for my life,” which was repeated in city after city almost word for word. In quite a few cases a bystander with a cell phone took videos of the interaction and as a result police are being seen as the criminals. I wish I could say that this is an unfair characterization.

In times past police have been almost universally “given the benefit of the doubt” in grand juries and courts across the land. Interestingly, in quite a few cases now the motivation for the first officer contact has been a very minor but legal offense such as having a broken taillight, which becomes a means for the city in question to issue a ticket for maybe $50.00. During the interaction with the driver – or jaywalker as in Ferguson – the policeman turns aggressive verbally and physically, ending in the black person's death. Those killings have been going on for generations. In some cases it is true that the suspect either mouths off at the cop, or tries to get away, as in the Charleston, SC shooting of Walter Scott. That particular shooting ended in the officer Michael Slager's being fired and arrested for murder.

Now that is what should happen in those cases, but it rarely does. I was partly moved and partly angered by the fact the police chief actually wept over the incident. Of course that officer was caught dead to rights, taking a shooter's stance and firing five or six shots into the fleeing man's back and then, to make matters worse, he bent down and picked up what looked to be his tazer and dropped it beside the dead man's body. He then used the story that Scott had stolen the tazer from him and tried to use it on him, in other words he, too, was afraid of Scott. It is important to note that not only police departments in many places but the local courts are apparently working together to deprive blacks, Hispanics and other poor people of their civil rights as well as their money.

A few organizations have sprung up whose goal is to watch the police and use their handy smart phones to take videos at sites of police activity. The police are not unaware of that and have begun seizing those little cameras or even arresting citizens on the grounds that they are “interfering with a police officer” in his lawful apprehension of a criminal. We need a law that states the police are not exempt from surveillance by citizens in these cases, and have no grounds for such an arrest.

The presence of an active and growing right wing uprising of racial and religious hatred makes politics the culprit in many of these cases, but I think sheer greed and corruption also are present in nearly all cases. That's one of the complaints that black people in Ferguson brought up about the police there. The police department of Waldo, FL was recently actually disbanded – it consisted of very few officers and the town is really tiny, so that wasn't too difficult. The territory is now under the police umbrella of another nearby town. Waldo's force was disbanded because of an organized and purposeful goal of gouging travelers down the highway by picking them up for speeding a few miles over the limit. That fine money went into the city coffers, and most travelers just left the matter alone and paid the fine. Waldo town limits had a very slow speed limit, while the highway's limit was 55 mph. By the time people realized they were in a different speed zone they were caught by the officer who was concealed on a side road. That practice is not uncommon in other semi-rural areas around the country either. It's still hard core corruption, however. Police and courts have too often been playing “fast and loose” with the law and just basic ethics for a long time.

The following news articles focus on the current mess going on in Baltimore. It is interesting to note that some local gangs, among them the Bloods and the Crips have been participating alongside prominent citizen and church leaders in the Baltimore encounters with police to keep the crowd calm, and not to kill or injure officer. It looks to me as though the entire black community in cities around the country are coming together to cooperate in bringing about justice. This is long overdue. We need not only the oversight of official groups like the DOJ, but also of legislatures both federal and state to write laws that define clearly what the role of police is and what their limitations are. We need to get well away from that old “benefit of the doubt” rule of thumb, and reform policing thoroughly. In addition, I think we should make this business of the Pentagon giving its old tanks and weapons to city governments for their police departments. There is no real need for police to have those unless the nation decides to eliminate unpopular groups of people – political liberals, perhaps!



BALTIMORE TODAY – SIX ARTICLES


What we have in this country may very well be phase two of the Civil Rights movement which is, so clearly to me, very much overdue. I've been advocating the involvement of the NAACP and other similar groups in putting together the kind of well-planned, peaceful but determined demand for new laws that will prevent the use of the RICO and USA PATRIOT acts by all governments and police departments to further abuse and stifle the poor and the minority groups by the simple mechanism of instilling fear in them. The police are no longer trustworthy to stand up for human rights, but rather have become a local army for heavily right-leaning populations around the country. This isn't just in Mississippi anymore, but everywhere. I think in Kent we have a new leader with promise. See the following articles on Kent and updates of events in Baltimore. The good piece of news I found in this article is that the Baltimore police commissioner “recognized Kent” and freed him without charges. Now if police leadership would really dig into the matter of firing and then arresting all criminal elements -- such as these six policemen -- within the police departments, there would be a return to the proper balance in PD/neighborhood interactions. Of course there is a need everywhere for police and for safe neighborhoods, but it can and should be done ethically.

In the NYPD, the police union was aggressively involved in defending those officers who first put the strangle hold on Eric Garner for no better reason than his high crime of selling loose cigarettes. In an attempt to embarrass him, they turned their backs on the city's mayor when he spoke against the offending policemen. The conclusion I draw from that is that a kind of warfare exists in the minds of many or possible most policemen nowadays, by which they justify any and all actions that happen to occur to them just because they're policemen. I think it's time to investigate police unions, city governments and in too many cases police management levels for criminal offenses and for all evidence of white supremacy beliefs. The vile racist emails sent among policemen and court officials in Ferguson, which was discovered by the DOJ qualify to me as a probably case of white supremacy beliefs. The good news is that those officers were punished for their actions. If the DOJ hadn't been standing over them, metaphorically speaking, they probably wouldn't have been disciplined – or am I becoming totally cynical?

I hate to say these things, because by no means are all police officers bad. I think they are often intimidated into staying quiet about violations by officers in the field, however. A “rule of silence” is maintained universally among departments throughout the US. That's how peer group pressure works too often. About two months ago one news article quoted a veteran policeman as saying anonymously that the real reason these offenses go on is simply that the top cops and courts don't adequately punish those who behave abusively, from Miranda issues to egregious violence. Really going after the “bad apples” and firing and/or prosecuting them would go a long way toward changing the situation. It would also free up those who are good people and interested in “serving” their communities as their pledge states, to step up to the plate immediately when officers physically abuse, shoot, verbally disrespect and plant evidence on anyone. No citizen should be treated that way, and just so there're no questions about the legality involved in the matter of racial abuse in this country, full citizenship was extended to ex-slaves and their offspring by the 13th Amendment under Abraham Lincoln.

See the following related, but useful articles for updates. Each contains some new information.



http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/04/30/freddie%20gray%20video/26623821/

Baltimore police turn over Gray findings to prosecutor
Yamiche Alcindor, Donna Leinwand Leger and Doug Stanglin, USA TODAY
April 30, 2015

Video – 'The Washington Post' reports a police document says Freddie Gray was "banging against walls" inside the police wagon after his arrest, a period when Baltimore police officials contend he must have sustained his fatal spinal injury.

'The Washington Post' reports a police document says Freddie Gray was "banging against walls" inside the police wagon after his arrest, a period when Baltimore police officials contend he must have sustained his fatal spinal injury.

The Baltimore police department, acting a day ahead of schedule, turned over to the state's attorney on Thursday its investigative findings into the death of Freddie Gray, but will not immediately release the material to the public, Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said.

The latest development comes amid a disputed allegation that a prisoner sharing a police van with Gray, who died of spinal injuries following his arrest, heard him intentionally trying to injure himself.

Gray's death one week after his arrest has sparked almost two weeks of protests that turned violent on Monday, prompting the governor to call out the National Guard.

Batts told reporters that despite turning over the department's file on the Gray case to state prosecutors, police were treating it as an "active investigation" and would be following new leads whenever possible.

He said 30 officers worked around the clock to complete its work because of his "sense of urgency" regarding the case.

"Family and community deserve transparency and truth," he said, although the material was not immediately being made public. He said State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby is "committed to seeing justice."

The dispute over a prisoner's alleged recollection of what occurred the night Gray was arrested underscored the pressure for disclosure surrounding the events.

The statement from the unidentified prisoner was contained in an application for a search warrant,The Washington Post reported Thursday. The warrant has been sealed by the court, but the Post said it had obtained the documents under the condition that the prisoner not be named.

The newspaper noted that the prisoner, although sharing the police van, was separated from Gray by a metal partition and could not see him.

According to the document, the prisoner told investigators that Gray was "banging against walls" inside the vehicle and was "intentionally trying to injure himself."

WBAL-TV, however, reports that its investigation showed no evidence to support the second prisoner's claim.

Investigative reporter Jane Miller told MSNBC on Thursday that medical evidence -- from the hospital and an autopsy -- found that Gray died of a single severe spinal injury resulting from a broken neck.

Miller said the medical evidence does not support a claim that Gray had been banging his head against the van wall.

WBAL also reported that video footage shows that the second prisoner was only in the van for five minutes and that officers can be seen looking into the wide open van at the point where he was picked up.

"If there was an irate, disruptive prisoner banging his head, certainly it doesn't look in the video that they (the officers) are worried about that," Miller said.
The reporter also noted that the unidentified prisoner has a "number of years" hanging over his head and has given two different accounts of events that night.

Gray's death touched off a series of protests that, in turn, led to violence, burning and looting Monday in Baltimore and provoked a week-long emergency nighttime curfew. The demonstrations in the two cities saw droves of chanting protesters lining city blocks and spilling over into nearby streets.

Thousands massed outside City Hall on Wednesday to protest Gray's death and the outrage spread to New York City where another large throng gathered in Union Square. Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said 18 people were arrested Wednesday, including two juveniles. Police in New York arrested more than 60 people.

There were encouraging signs -- including peaceful protests, open schools and a free concert on a sunny day -- that Baltimore might be righting itself after Monday's devastating violence and chaos.

Six officers have been suspended with pay pending the investigation that could result in criminal charges. The latest protests took place outside Mosby's office.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake sought to defuse a new flash point by correcting "misinformation" that some kind of report in the case would be made public Friday.

Cheryl Stewart, spokesperson for the mayor, said the findings will not be made public anytime soon. The state's attorney's office will review the report and decide whether to charge anyone in Gray's death, she said.

"The misconception is that this report will be released publicly and it will not be," Stewart said. "We just want to make it clear that releasing too much information could be harmful to the investigation and to justice."

"Everybody is pinning on Friday like this is going to a big verdict or something and that's not going to happen," Stewart said. "I understand people want the details. But giving it to the public could jeopardize whether charges will be brought."

The protests, while counting in the thousands during the day, have dwindled to only small crowds at night since the city ordered a 10 p.m. curfew, bolstered by 1,000 law enforcement officers and some 2,000 National Guard troops.

"We are asking that they remain peaceful,'' Baltimore police Capt. Eric Kowalczyk said.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said he was "very encouraged'' by the relative calm. Some 2,000 National Guard troops and more than 1,000 law enforcement officers were on hand to enforce the curfew and maintain order.

"We're not out of the woods yet,'' Hogan said.

The Baltimore protesters also demanded a deeper look at how police treat black men in the city. Signs included "End Police Brutality Now," Justice and Equality For All" and "Stop Police Militarization Killings."

Many were students clad in sports uniforms, t-shirts and hooded sweatshirts from their colleges and high schools.

"This is an important issue," said Jillian Tse, a senior at Johns Hopkins University. "It's more just than just police brutality. I think it's systemic racism."





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/joseph-kent-prominent-baltimore-protester-will-return-to-keep-the-peace-despite-arrest/

Baltimore activist will return to "keep the peace" despite arrest
CBS NEWS
April 30, 2015

Photograph – Joseph Kent is interviewed by CBSN in Baltimore on April 30, 2015.
 CBS NEWS

Prominent Baltimore activist Joseph Kent, who was arrested Tuesday evening as Baltimore's curfew went into effect, told CBSN on Thursday that he is undeterred by the arrest and planned to return to the streets tonight to "keep the peace."

Kent, 21, a well-known civil rights organizer in Baltimore, was trying to defuse tensions between police and people protesting the death of Freddie Gray before an armored truck pulled up and a team of National Guard troops rushed him.

"I just disappeared," Kent said of the arrest. "It happened so quickly and professionally."

The incident was captured on live TV and sparked outrage on Twitter.

Kent, a student at Morgan State University, has been a prominent figure in other protests of police brutality and has been widely credited with helping to keep those protests peaceful. He told CBSN that his message will not change despite his arrest.

"Don't use this (arrest) as an excuse to have another riot," he said.

Kent, who was charged with a curfew violation, said the police commissioner recognized him and expedited his release. However, Kent said "a lot" of other people who were arrested earlier this week were still stuck in the booking process.

Kent's high-profile activism and subsequent arrest have garnered a legion of admirers. His Instagram account has hundreds - maybe even thousands - of new followers and he says his phone is ringing off the hook.

Kent says he is able to defuse the tensions between police and protesters because many of the people expressing anger can relate to him.

"They know where I come from," he said. "They look at me as one of them."

Meanwhile, authorities plan to turn over the findings of a police investigation into Gray's death to a state's attorney by Friday. Gray's mysterious death from a spinal injury a week after his April 12 arrest is what sparked riots Monday - the worst the city has seen since 1968.

"Police brutality is still happening and it's a pattern," Kent said.



“Kent, 21, a well-known civil rights organizer in Baltimore, was trying to defuse tensions between police and people protesting the death of Freddie Gray before an armored truck pulled up and a team of National Guard troops rushed him. "I just disappeared," Kent said of the arrest. "It happened so quickly and professionally." The incident was captured on live TV and sparked outrage on Twitter. …. Kent, a music student at Morgan State University, has been a prominent figure in other protests of police brutality and has been widely credited with helping to keep those protests peaceful. He told CBSN that his message will not change despite his arrest. "Don't use this (arrest) as an excuse to have another riot," he said. Kent, who was charged with a curfew violation, said the police commissioner recognized him and expedited his release. However, Kent said "a lot" of other people who were arrested earlier this week were still stuck in the booking process.” …. "Police brutality is still happening and it's a pattern," Kent said.”

“Kent says he is able to defuse the tensions between police and protesters because many of the people expressing anger can relate to him. "They know where I come from," he said. "They look at me as one of them." Meanwhile, authorities plan to turn over the findings of a police investigation into Gray's death to a state's attorney by Friday.” I looked on the Internet to find out more about Joseph Kent, hoping to put together a biography, but Wikipedia has yet to record anything about him. I did find several more news articles on his arrest and civil rights activism, including Ferguson MO. See the articles below about him on RT and USA Today.



http://rt.com/usa/254277-joseph-kent-disappeared-police/
Where is #JosephKent? Prominent Ferguson activist snatched by police live on TV in Baltimore
April 29, 2015.

A community organizer who led Ferguson solidarity protests was seized by riot police in full view of the media Tuesday evening, after Baltimore imposed a nightly curfew. His seizure caused much criticism in social media.

After a night of uncertainty as to what happened, Joseph Kent was confirmed to be alive and in police custody.

Read More: Baltimore riot: Police vs protesters LIVE UPDATES
According to the media present at the intersection of North and Pennsylvania Avenues in West Baltimore, the focal point of Monday’s riot and Tuesday’s peaceful gathering, Kent had been working to keep the assembly calm and urging the crowd to disperse. He appeared to have been successful, as television footage showed him alone, standing off against a line of riot police.

Around 10:38pm local time, a National Guard vehicle appeared behind Kent, and several officers surged forward, seizing him, according to the footage. The vehicle shielded them from the cameras, and by the time it had passed through the police line, Kent was nowhere to be seen.

The whole thing was captured by a CNN crew, standing at the intersection filming the police line. The dramatic arrest led many observers to wonder if Kent had been “disappeared.” Twitter lit up with the hashtag #JosephKent, his seizure was described as "black-bagging," and observers noted he was never read his rights.

RT @AngryBlackLady: if #JosephKent was out after curfew, they didn’t *arrest* him. No Miranda. They disappeared him. https://t.co/N49Awxw1T1
— Talib Kweli Greene (@TalibKweli) April 29, 2015

Early Wednesday morning, attorney Stephen Beatty confirmed that Kent was alive and awaiting processing at Baltimore’s Central Booking and Intake Facility (CBIF).
“As a service to the community I can confirm that Mr. Kent is at CBIF awaiting processing,” Beatty tweeted. “Report is he is ok and safe. Due to large numbers of arrests, processing is slow. He is not even in system yet. More will be known in about 5 hours... But everyone breathe.”

“I am hoping that when [Kent] sees the commissioner, he will just be released on [recognizance]” Beatty added later. Under this procedure, the suspect is released without bail, after promising in writing to appear in court for upcoming proceedings.

Shortly after noon local time, Beatty tweeted he was going to CBIF personally. Two hours later, he confirmed meeting with Kent, whom he described as "healthy and positive," and confirmed being retained as his attorney.

A student at the historically black Morgan State University in Baltimore, Kent rose to prominence as a community organizer during last fall’s Baltimore protests in solidarity with Ferguson, Missouri. Speaking to Baltimore CityPaper later, civil rights organizer Reverend Heber Brown IIIdescribed Kent a “Martin Luther King with tattoos and gold fronts.”

According to the Baltimore police, 35 people were arrested for violating the 10:00pm - 5:00am curfew imposed under the state of emergency rules in Baltimore. The curfew began on Tuesday night, and is scheduled to last a week, unless extended. Approximately 250 people have been arrested since Monday’s clashes between what appeared to be high-school students and police, which turned into riots in West Baltimore on Monday evening. The state of emergency suspended the regulation requiring the police to present those arrested before the courts within 24 hours, extending that deadline to 47 hours instead. Reports from attorneys flocking to the CBIF indicate that bail for first-time offenders has been set to $10,000, cash.

Several businesses have been vandalized and looted, and at least five buildings and 144 vehicles burned down, as riots shook Baltimore on Monday night. By the following day, thousands of law enforcement officers from around Maryland and the neighboring states were deployed to Baltimore, along with over 1000 Maryland National Guard, patrolling the city in armored vehicles.Tuesday’s gatherings were different, with prayer circles, street parties, music and dancing. On a couple of occasions objects were thrown at police, but community organizers – including Kent and the self-identified members of Crips and Bloods street gangs – kept the gatherings peaceful.



http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/04/29/joseph-kent-arrested-live-tv-missing/26565625/

Baltimore protester Joseph Kent a 'free man,' attorney says
Lori Grisham, USA TODAY Network
April 30, 2015

Prominent Baltimore activist Joseph Kent who was arrested Tuesday night on live TV was released Thursday morning, according to a tweet from his attorney Steve Beatty. Kent's arrest, broadcast on CNN, showed him walking with his hands up in front of a police line after the city's 10 p.m. curfew. He was quickly surrounded by members of the National Guard before being pushed into an armored car. Kent's whereabouts after the arrest were largely unknown and until Beatty began giving updates on social media.

Kent, a 21-year-old music student at Morgan State University, gained attention during protests in Baltimore after the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., according to a 2014 report in the Baltimore City Paper. In that report, Kent is credited with helping to keep protests peaceful and organized.

On Tuesday, Kent was participating in protests following the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who died on April 19 from a spinal injury obtained while in police custody. The city instituted a 10 p.m. curfew after riots Monday night left buildings burned and police officers injured.

USA TODAY Network contacted the Baltimore Police Department, but the public information officers have not returned calls and emails for comment.




http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2015/04/29/baltimore-freddie-gray-race-police-shooting-editorials-debates/26609493/

Baltimore uprising not all about race: Our view
The Editorial Board
April 29, 2015

Since 2011, the city has paid out more than $6 million to settle, and hush up, more than 100 police brutality lawsuits.

Since the killing of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer in Ferguson, Mo., eight months ago and subsequent riots, the discussion has been all about race, and rightly so. Ferguson is two-thirds black, but the power structure — from city manager to judge to prosecuting attorney and clerks — was white. Just four of its 54 police officers were black. The Justice Department found overwhelming evidence of bigotry in policing.

But Baltimore, where riots erupted this week after the death of another young black man in police custody, doesn't fit that cookie cutter. Its mayor is a black woman, as was her predecessor, and several black police commissioners have run the department, where half the officers are African American. Yet Baltimore is the latest city to erupt in race-linked violence.

ANOTHER VIEW: Riots don't hinder the movement

The obvious conclusion: The problem isn't just about race. There's much more — a toxic mix of desperate poverty, drug-ridden neighborhoods, tough cops dealing with tough problems, and an insular culture that isolates police from the community.

Long before Freddie Gray's death on April 19, Baltimore had a deplorable record of police violence against citizens. Since 2011, the city has paid out more than $6 million to settle, and hush up, police brutality lawsuits.

Now, it will need to face up to its problems, racial and non-racial. Among the most intractable:

•Thin blue line. Police — regardless of race — often develop an us-vs.-them mindset. Cops work with other cops by day and socialize with them off duty. "No matter their skin color, their uniform is still blue," Northeastern University criminologist James Alan Fox says. "And blue trumps black."

•Unconscious bias. Because "a hugely disproportionate percentage of street crime is committed by young men of color," FBI Director James Comey said in a recent speech, veteran officers start to take "a mental shortcut" that leads them to be more suspicious of black males. Fair? No. Reality? Yes.

•Lack of accountability. Police departments aren't required to keep track of excessive-force incidents, and most do not. Police shootings are investigated by fellow officers or prosecutors who work closely with police. Under a Maryland law, superiors may not question an officer for 10 days after an incident, even a death — an absurd requirement that impedes investigations.

•Poverty and hopelessness. Crime and inevitable confrontations with police occur frequently in impoverished communities where young people lack hope, jobs, educational opportunities and strong two-parent families. None of those problems can be solved by police, who are stuck dealing with the violent consequences.

What to do? One well-aired innovation, increased use of body cameras, is already taking place. Progress also depends on better police training, ridding departments of rogue cops, and rebuilding trust with communities.

None of this is simple or easy, or painted just in black and white. But neither can problems that result in bloodshed and injustice be dismissed as too hard to fix. The price of that approach can be seen today in the streets of Baltimore.

USA TODAY's editorial opinions are decided by its Editorial Board, separate from the news staff. Most editorials are coupled with an opposing view — a unique USA TODAY feature.




http://www.cbsnews.com/news/baltimore-protests-freddie-gray-prisoner-in-same-van-heard-banging/

Insight from prisoner transported with Freddie Gray?
CBS NEWS
April 30, 2015

There may be new insight into the arrest of Freddie Gray, as police get a handle on the protests that have shocked Baltimore.

Police plan to release details of their investigation into the circumstances of the 25-year-old's arrest to the local prosecutor Friday. Both agencies are conducting separate investigations, and it's not clear when the results will be made public.

A Washington Post story quotes a prisoner transported in the same van as saying he could hear Gray "banging against the walls" and believed that he "was intentionally trying to injure himself." The other prisoner couldn't see Gray, however, as the back of the van was divided by a partition.

The paper cites an unreleased Baltimore police document in their Thursday report, and commissioner Anthony Batts addressed the allegation to CBS station WJZ last week.

"The second prisoner who was picked up says that he didn't see any harm done to Freddie at all. What he has said is that he heard Freddie thrashing about," Batts said.

Baltimore City Police and Maryland National Guard have coordinated a formidable police presence in West Baltimore, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues. There were 18 arrests Wednesday and no officers were hurt. The mandatory curfew meant streets were clear overnight.

The state of emergency in Baltimore brought Congressman Elijah Cummings back to his district and his constituents. He urged them to focus on what he believes is the issue.

"The relationship between the African American community and the police, I believe, is the civil rights issue of this generation right here," Cummings said.

Police in riot gear massed Wednesday on one of the blocks that saw violent rioting and looting on Monday.

More than 2,000 National Guard members are patrolling Baltimore's 80 square miles.

"It's a little heartbreaking because that's my community, but I know I have a duty to do, so I plan on doing my duty," Pfc. Dana Williams said.

Thousands of demonstrators moved from Baltimore's Penn Station to City Hall Wednesday, trying to unite "Charm City," and demanding answers about what happened to Gray.

"We still don't know why Freddie Gray was arrested," Morgan State University's Dr. Ray Winbush said.

On April 12, 25 year-old Gray was seemingly unable to walk on his own to the police van. He was found unconscious inside that van when it got to the police station.