The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age
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    Baltimore On Alert

    By barefooted on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 6:28pm |

    Freddie Gray was put to rest today amid calls for peace, justice and answers. Hours later, young people - high school age - began assaulting police officers, burning police cars and looting at least two businesses. The Baltimore Sun reports:

    Seven police officers were injured Monday afternoon in a violent clash with demonstrators that began near Mondawmin Mall and spread across West Baltimore. One officer was unresponsive and others suffered broken bones, police spokesman Eric Kowalczyk said.

    At a hastily staged press conference, Capt. Kowalczyk told reporters to expect to see "tear gas and pepper balls" deployed by multiple police departments in the hours to come. "We will do whatever is necessary", he said. "This is not okay." Meanwhile, the Governor has put the MD National Guard on alert.

    These are kids, folks, and tensions are incredibly high with nightfall just hours away. Let's all hope that cooler heads all around prevail ... even as we hold our breath.

    Comments

    The CVS pharmacy, the first business to be looted (with no police interference), is currently in flames.


    by barefooted on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 6:44pm

    This isn't good.  I hope it doesn't spin out of control. 


    by trkingmomoe on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 7:18pm

    Governor Hogan has declared a State of Emergency and deployed the National Guard.


    by barefooted on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 7:18pm

    Is there a live feed to a TV station that is covering this?


    by trkingmomoe on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 7:19pm

    I don't know about local stations. CNN seems to have the best cable news coverage.


    by barefooted on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 7:26pm

    I found one.  The mayor is getting ready to speak.  

    http://www.abc2news.com/live


    by trkingmomoe on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 7:26pm

    I have watched continued coverage of this mess by MSNBC FOR HOURS (off and on)

    I do not feel that this is the end of this sort of thing.

    Besides Fergusson of course, I think we will see more riots and more SWAT teams and more fires and....


    by Richard Day on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 7:55pm

    Shades of Ferguson ... the police are standing back, literally watching, as the looting continues unfettered. And in the aftermath we'll all hear about how the community was harmed by the lawless rioters - which, while true, conveniently overlooks the police inaction.


    by barefooted on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 8:05pm

    The police are damned if they do and damned if they don't.  

    Maybe arresting these trouble makers and taking away what ever lifetime government benefits they might have been entitled to, will make those with wisdom reflect upon their actions? 

    The foolish will just have to suffer for their bad decisions? . 

    Don't even think about biting the hand that feeds you; that hand can slap you down. 


    by Resistance on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 11:29pm

    We have disenfranchised many who are minorities.  We have our jails stuffed full with young minorities with the war on drugs. There is structural problems that need to be addressed. It is going to be a long hot summer.  We are seeing history repeat it self from the 1960's.


    by trkingmomoe on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 8:49pm

    Well I hope you're not thinking about pardoning or excusing, this current group of scofflaws  because our jails are already full? 


    by Resistance on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 11:41pm

    Maybe snipers, positioned on rooftops, shooting the looters,arsonists and trouble makers would have sent a clear message?

    The risk of being shot, might have restored calm quicker for the rest of society, who fears this is getting out of control ?

    Who will be the next victim of this mob? 

    Everyone would have been ducking for cover, rather than being on the street, robbing and burning businesses of innocent people, because some are pissed. 

    Who'd have dared to come out onto the streets, looking to cause mayhem? 


    by Resistance on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 11:10pm

    The Baltimore PD has a history of abuse. The city paid out $5.7M from 2011-2014. Cases include a pregnant woman and a woman selling raffle tickets. There is very little reaction or outrage from law enforcement or the judicial system.

    Link to multiple cases of police abuse by BPD

    http://data.baltimoresun.com/news/police-settlements/

    The death of unarmed people is not taken seriously. Police with cameras are not going to make a difference. Eric Garner was choked to death on camera. The police faced no repercussions. An off-duty police officer in Chicago shoots blindly into a crowd killing 22-year old Rekia Boyd. The officer was cleared of wrong-doing. The Chicago police union wants the officer involved in the shooting back on the force.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/20/dante-servin-verdict_n_7102910....

    We still have no official timeline of events leading to the spinal cord injury and death of a man in custody. The Baltimore Police Department's Bill of Rights allows 10 days to elapse before an officer involved in a homicide has to submit to questioning. There are a host of other protections not afforded regular citizens. The system is rigged to prevent police from facing justice.

     


    by rmrd0000 on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 11:24pm

    Evidently, anarchy is what you would promote, because you feel grievances are unaddressed? 


    by Resistance on Mon, 04/27/2015 - 11:38pm

    Anarchy is what follows when grievances like homicide are not addressed. Christians like Jamal Bryant have been warning. The police department that violence would result if attention was not paid to abuses.

    People reach a breaking point and will rebel against an abusive authority. 

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/27/law-enforcement-bill-of-rights_...

    What I want is for law enforcement and the judicial system to stop abuse their power and killing unarmed people. The police are the only ones with the power to stop shooting fleeing people in the back, choking people to death for selling loose cigarettes, and severing spinal cords for looking suspicious. 

    Once people believe that any encounter with police can lead to bodily harm, they will view the police as the enemy. Police will be treated just as a person would treat a thug. Cleveland police killed a child playing with a toy gun within 2 seconds of arrival. The officer who shot was considered too unstable to wear a police uniform by another department. A man in South Carolina is shot for complying with an officer's request to get a driver's license from a car.

    http://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/dashcam-shows-cops-shooting-an-unarmed...

    The authorities have become the thugs.

    Edit to add: A reserve deputy who bought his credentials on a Tulsa police department kills a suspect spread eagle on the ground. This unqualified man plead guilty to manslaughter. The judge lets the man go on vacation to the Bahamas. 

    An elderly man from India walking outside is son's home in Alabama is partially paralyzed by police because he did not respond to questioning fast enough.

    http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/02/indian_citizen_stopped_by_madi....

    The thugs are in uniform

    Jail the thugs who crash peaceful protests. Jail the thugs in uniform. Equal justice under the law.


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 12:25am

    Seems to me that most of the arguments for depriving citizens of the right to bear arms would also apply to the police.  If you disarmed the police you would immediately save the lives of all those innocent bystanders they shoot every year.

    Perhaps we could issue guns to the police temporarily, when the middle classes (e.g. shopkeepers) are threatened?


    by Lurker on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 2:23am

    Typically silly Conservative response to a serious issue. Conservatives are up in arms when government agents abuse power against whites. Then the agents are called jack-booted thugs. When the rights of people deemed poor or powerless are abused, Conservatives make jokes. Blacks are concerned when the rights of suspects are abused by police because police don't take the time to separate the law-abiding from the true suspect. The man shot for complying with the police officer in Georgia was attempting to retrieve his license (see link above). He was not a criminal. Tamar Rice was 12-years old and not a criminal. He was dead within 3 seconds of arrival of the police.

    The situation is so bad that many in Baltimore are happy to have the National Guard come in because that means the Baltimore PD has some oversight. Conservatives are so blind that when abuse of power by government agents occurs against minorities, they ignore the crimes. Baltimore settled over 100 cases of police abuse between 2011 and 2014. The maximal payout allowed was $200K. Baltimore paid out $5.7M Cliven Bundy was the inspiration for the events in Baltimore. 


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 8:05am

    Since you didn't read the Baltimore Sun article, perhaps this short summary will help you understand the level of abuse involved. The police culture has to change

    http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/04/the-brutality-of-pol...


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 10:07am

    There's a simple reality. A cop can grind a person's face into the pavement and get away with it. Even several cops can grind several people's face into the pavement. But at a certain point if too many cops are grinding too many people's face into the pavement eventually the people are going to fight back. It doesn't have to be most cops. Just enough to reach a tipping point. You can call it anarchy, you can call it anything you want. But it is always the end result of abuse of power. Eventually the people fight back.


    by ocean-kat on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 3:29am

    After reading this I thought;   bull......   as in  Sitting Bull  who resisted the authorities and lost. 

    When I was a boy, the Sioux owned the world. The sun rose and set on their land; they sent ten thousand men to battle. Where are the warriors today? Who slew them? Where are our lands? Who owns them?   Sitting Bull

    4……. for a living dog is better than a dead lion. Ecclesiastes 9:4I


    by Resistance on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 5:02am

    Sure, when oppressed people fight back there's no guarantee they will win. "for a living dog is better than a dead lion" is an opinion. Each person must decide for themselves if the fight is worth the risk. The level of the oppression and the odds of success are two major considerations when making that decision.


    by ocean-kat on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 7:04am

    Ecclesiastes 10:5

    5 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, as it were lan error proceeding from the ruler: 6 mfolly is set in many high places, and the rich sit in a low place. 7 nI have seen slaves oon horses, and princes walking on the ground like slaves.

    Unwise fools can be placed in authority. They can appoint nitwits to carry out the law. Those more worthy may be found in lower rungs of society.


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 8:26am

    WOW


    by Richard Day on Thu, 04/30/2015 - 2:28am

    There's so much sadness. Even in the harshness of anger, there's deep, pervasive sadness. The causes are as numerous as the faces caught on camera. But does that mean the destruction can be excused? Should valid feelings of outrage expressed through violence be condoned? The answer is obvious and uncomfortably simple. So we say no ... but.

    Why do we need to explain intentionally bad acts committed by people who know better? It's as though if we don't rush to give reasons, if we don't immediately "understand", we're heartless and uncaring. Yet we can't condemn wrong selectively or call it good because it's desperate. If we do that, we undermine what it means to do the right thing. We lessen the power of those who fight for justice through peace - the hardest fight of all.

    So no, Resistance, we don't need snipers on rooftops. We do need qualified law enforcement to arrest people who steal before a mob forms. And yes, rm, unimaginable crimes have been committed against undeserving people and have gone unpunished. That is not an excuse for looting, burning and assaulting others. It just isn't.


    by barefooted on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 4:13pm

    I said

    Jail the thugs who crash peaceful protests. Jail the thugs in uniform. Equal justice under the law.

    Where did I say burning and looting was justified. The rage is understandable. The police union wants all 6 cops involved in the fatal arrest back on the force. The city's Law Enforcement Officer Bill of Rights gives the officers 10 days before they have to give any testimony. The investigating police waited 8 days before attempting to retrieve store video. Some tapes were on 6 day cycles, so the relevant video was recorded over. Seems intentional to me.

    We keep saying there are good cops, but they never seem to be around when bad cops are harming citizens. From what we have seen they all are willing to lie. We never here a dissenting voice.

    Before you get on your moral high horse, read what I said. I never gave either set of criminals a pass. Jail the thugs throwing rocks and injuring cops. Jail the looters. Jail the arsonists. But also jail the police with fractured Freddie Green's spine.


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 5:09pm

    So we say no ... but.

    I wasn't insinuating that you condone their behavior, rm. I was reflecting on why we condemn it with caveats. You've done that here, and I've done the same elsewhere.

    I used to have a Quarter Horse names Red. Regrettably, as much as I love to ride, he was the last high horse I was on.


    by barefooted on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 5:47pm

    I condemn it with caveats because it was provoked behavior. People just didn't gather around and say let's grab some stale potato chips. The governing authority of the city knew that citizens were being treated poorly and expected to get away with it. The police knew that the union would cover them.People came out into the streets. Once people come out into the streets, a criminal element sees an opportunity.

    If the police knew that they would be punished, they would be less likely to misbehave. The police don't care about severing a spine because they know that the police union will back them up. I expect criminals to be criminals. I expect police to obey the law. I don't expect thugs to shed a tear of the loss of low-cost housing for seniors. Lock them up, they took advantage of righteous anger. Lock up the cops who severed the spine.

    When salary negotiations come up, publicize that you want to tie salary increases to creation of a review process that includes citizens and not just police and police cronies when an officer accused of abuse is up for retention.

    I use caveats, I separate out the peaceful protestors, who are innocent, from the thugs in street clothes and the thugs in uniform. I have seen peaceful members of the crowd acting as a shield to prevent further damage. I have yet to see where an officer stopped another officer from maiming a citizen. The officer who stopped the offending officer and reported the event would be considered a "rat".


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 6:10pm

    The police stood around with their fingers up their ...   while violence was escalating.

    That is not a solution, nor a deterrent, to what could have escalated into a massacre.

    Innocent people shouldn't have to endure looters and those who would exploit others during a crisis or disaster.

    The message must be sent loud and clear, here and now,  forever, ...looters and those bent on burning down homes, without giving a thought to who might be the next victim of the mob, will not be tolerated and will be met with the severest of penalties. .

    This is not Rwanda, where we wait till the slaughter ends, before we act.

    Afraid to act, because someone might accuse the authorities of racial bias?  

    Edited to add 

    2014 Baltimore City Homicides/Murders - List and Map

    The majority of these homicides are black on black crime.

    The community would have the rest of the nation believe, all the perps were angels and that the cops have it out for them. 

    America watched, as black youths showed their propensity for uprising against law and order and scoffing at authority.

    Bad ass attitude, was on display for all of America too see.

    Don't expect sympathy.  


    by Resistance on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 8:42pm

    Turn on your TV and watch the response of the community tonight.

    We shall see if this holds.

    Law enforcement created the problem by abusing citizens. Red the report from the Baltimore Sun.


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 8:43pm

    More Hate?  More animalistic behavior?

    Three-alarm fire engulfs senior center under construction - Baltimore Sun

    What did the owners of the New Senior  Center, do to deserve the punishment from the hypocritical mob?  

    Selfish bastards who think  " if we suffer, so will everyone else"?  


    by Resistance on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 8:51pm

    Turn on your TV today

    So far most are obeying the curfew. Some of those who are left may represent some of those causing problems, We shall see. A large church gathering left about twenty minutes ago.


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 9:49pm

    It's been wonderful to watch the coverage today, and a relief to see that peace is holding tonight. Good on ya, Baltimore.

    The true test is yet to come, when they finally hear what conclusions have been reached. Community, faith and other leaders have shown how well they can instill calm amidst turmoil - will they be as successful if, in the end, those conclusions appear unjust? Again?


    by barefooted on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 12:52am

    I turned to Fox News briefly last night. I wondered how they would cover the fact that most of the crowd was obeying the order to disperse. Sean Hannity was the anchor for the coverage.the crowd was characterized as thugs. One reporter was chasing Rep Elijah Cummings around. Cummings lives in the effected area in West Baltimore and encouraged the crowd to disperse. The crowd was leaving. The reporter grabbed Cummings asking if the crowd was listening to the Representative. "Some of them are", was Cumming's calm reply. The crowd thinned. You could literally see the disappointment on the Fox reporters face that he would not get to show thugs rioting.


    by rmrd0000 on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 8:10am

    There is no evidence that this fire was related to the protests but that fact doesn't stop our Xtian reactionary from passing judgment and spewing bile at the untermensch.

    I saw this same vile behavior in White neighborhoods during the Detroit riots and its resurgence just shows how thin the veneer of tolerance is and the racism/classism that quickly boils to the surface when the Little People act out.


    by Peter (not verified) on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 11:30am

    The message must be sent loud and clear, here and now,  forever, ...looters and those bent on burning down homes, without giving a thought to who might be the next victim of the mob, will not be tolerated and will be met with the severest of penalties. .

    Will there ever be a time when a conservative will say: 

    The message must be sent loud and clear, here and now,  forever, ...police who abuse their power will not be tolerated and will be met with the severest of penalties. .


    by ocean-kat on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 5:27am

    Richard Nixon was elected on a Law And Order platform in '68 preaching much the same message you are parroting today.

    Your reformist jab at the conservatives is a bit trite because Baltimore and many minority cities are controlled by the Democrat party who defend the same power structure and class system as the Repugs do.


    by Peter (not verified) on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 11:45am

    The newly elected Democratic Mayors of NYC and Baltimore have police reform as part of their agenda.


    by rmrd0000 on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 12:00pm

    The community would  have the rest of the nation believe all the perps were angels and that the cops have it out for them.

    America watched as black youths showed their propensity for uprising against law and order etc

    Add : Some


    by Flavius on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 8:21am

    It would actually be few.

    The crowd dispersed except for a few random rowdies. The community spent the time cleaning up. Some even organized to provide entertainment for children home from school. The day was peaceful.

    Police and military overreaction could have resulted in more conflict. Leaders and citizens did their duty. Those looking for dire results or the end times would have gotten their desired outcome by ordering the police to directly confront citizens.

    The Mayor had to walk a fine line. Too little force and malcontents could take control. Too much force and the crowd gets angered. Community leaders and parents worked wonders. Parents were out with their children during the day giving guidance and allowing them to watch entertainment delivered by locals. Christian and Muslim clergy provided spiritual guidance. Police and military were restrained. Hopefully peace will continue in the coming days.

    One thing we do realize is that we should never put those who are filled with fear and seeing only ruin ahead in charge of anything in a crisis their fear will cause them to act in a cowardly fashion ending in destruction. Leadership takes courage.


    by rmrd0000 on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 9:49am

    Fox News has been going bonkers because they were not able to show a riot to their fearful viewers. 

     


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 04/28/2015 - 11:14pm

    I agree with whatever MLK would have said..


    by Flavius on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 12:04am

    At a press conference a few minutes ago, the PD "clarified" that their investigation report will not be released to the public on Friday. It will be handed over to the prosecutors office, which is also not expected to release the findings. The "integrity" of any pending prosecution (uh-huh) must be maintained.

    Apparently, the embers are dying, so more gasoline is needed.


    by barefooted on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 4:44pm

    The Washington Post reports tonight:

    BALTIMORE —A prisoner sharing a police transport van with Freddie Gray told investigators that he could hear Gray “banging against the walls” of the vehicle and believed that he “was intentionally trying to injure himself,” according to a police document obtained by The Washington Post.


    by barefooted on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 10:12pm

    Jayne Miller, a news reporter for Baltimore television station WBAL, appeared on msnbc' s "Last Word" via cellphone. Miller noted that the injuries suffered by Freddie Gray would require more speed and force than could be achieved in the confined space of a van. She based this on information obtain from conversations with neurosurgeons. It should be noted that she has access to medical staff at the famed university of Maryland Shock Trauma Center and Johns Hopkins Hospital. The WaPo may be serving as a useful idiot for a document intentionally leaked by the Baltimore City Police Department to remove  guilt from the 6 involved police officers.


    by rmrd0000 on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 10:47pm

    Yes, I saw that, and she also noted that reports have been that Gray was already unresponsive by the time the second prisoner was put inside. It is clearly an intentional leak meant to serve a purpose.


    by barefooted on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 10:59pm

    One gets the feeling, if the 6 officers are not lynched, all hell will break lose?


    by Resistance on Wed, 04/29/2015 - 11:20pm

    You need to take time to read this and keep following this site. 

    http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2015/apr/29/freddie-gray-protests-baltimore-new-york-san-diego-boston-live-updates#block-55419cf5e4b090ea3d99864c


    by trkingmomoe on Thu, 04/30/2015 - 12:06am

    Thanks for that, momoe.


    by barefooted on Thu, 04/30/2015 - 12:40am