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Mosby Announces There Will Be No Justice for Freddie Gray

Baltimore, MD - The Baltimore Action Legal Team (BALT) is devastated to learn that the Baltimore State’s Attorney has dropped all of the remaining charges against the police officers who killed Freddie Gray.                           

“Freddie was walking down the street, doing nothing wrong, when he had the misfortune of meeting the gaze of Lt. Brian Rice. It should offend and terrify every resident of Baltimore that in 2016 the act of locking eyes with a white police officer cost Freddie his life.” said Iman Freeman of BALT. “On top of that, today we learned that no one will be held accountable for his murder.”

In announcing the decision, Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby said that Baltimore Police Department (BPD) displayed “consistent bias” at “every stage” of the investigation. Police Commissioner Kevin Davis continues to preside over a police department that is not doing enough to end police brutality. Today marks three months almost to the day since plain clothes police shot a 13-year-old child who was running away from police while holding a toy. BPD still has not released the results of its investigation into the shooting of a child or taken any action to punish the officer.

Baltimore Police Conduct Illegal Mass Arrests, Followed by Inhumane Treatment in Police Vans

 Baltimore, MD – Yesterday, Baltimore Police arrested 65 peaceful protesters including legal observers, bystanders, and 10 children. After their arrest, more than 30 people spent more than seven hours trapped inside police vans with their hands painfully cuffed behind them in violation of police procedure and international human rights standards. One protester passed out and vomited inside the wagon.

     “The targeted arrests of peaceful protestors and Legal Observers is a shameful tactic that demonstrates that the Baltimore Police Department’s goal was not to uphold the law, but to silence dissent. Any person who favors freedom should be outraged by these arrests and the treatment protesters received,” said Jenny Egan, Baltimore Action Legal Team.

BALT Informing the Community | 2016 Primary Election Information

Timeline

April 5, 2016: Deadline to register to vote for the primary election. (by 9:00 pm)

April 14, 2016: First day for early voting (in person)

April 19, 2016: Deadline for a registered voter to request a mailed or faxed absentee ballot.

April 21, 2016: Last day for early voting

April 22, 2106: Deadline for a registered voter to request an electronic absentee ballot

Poll Hours

10:00 AM - 8:00 PM (Early Voting)

7:00 AM-8:00 PM (Election Day)

Online Voter Registration

The State of Maryland allows online voter registration: Visit: https://voterservices.elections.maryland.gov/OnlineVoterRegistration/InstructionsStep1 

Restoration of Voting Rights

Effective, March 10, 2016, if you have been convicted of a felony and have completed serving a court-ordered sentence of imprisonment, you are eligible to register to vote. If you are on parole or probation, you can still register to vote. 

 

A Busted System Will Always Render Broken Results

Baltimore, MD - As our entire city is aware, Judge Williams declared a mistrial in the matter of the State of Maryland v. William Porter because 12 jurors could not agree on a unanimous decision on any of the four charges Mr. Porter faced. Baltimore Action Legal Team (BALT) is saddened by the news, but hopeful that Freddie Gray will receive justice. To be clear, anything less than a guilty verdict for all officers involved is not justice.

In response to the mistrial, BALT held a panel discussion on Wednesday night to dissect what happened in the Porter trial. BALT is committed to increasing the awareness of injustices rooted in structural racism and economic inequality. Unfortunately, the law in this case is not as clear as it needs to be.  As attorneys, we understand the complex nature of this case. Mr. Porter was not charged with committing an act. In fact, he was charged for failing to act.  Aside from the obvious legal questions raised by this case (and the many others like it), there is a much broader discussion BALT can’t ignore – we must not simply decry the unfair results of an unjust system – we must explore ways we can create a better system. 

Slide Presentation from Broken Bail System Community Event

On Tuesday, November 2nd, Todd H. Oppenheim, an attorney in the Felony Trial Division of the Public Defender's Office for Baltimore City, discussed the bail review, the first step in a long process of denying indigent defendants their rights. Mr. Oppenheim discussed how pretrial incarceration, due to high bails, impacts life of cases (for representation, and the client's physical and mental states).  A link to his presentation is below. Thank you to Todd, Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle, Baltimore Bloc, Coppin State's Urban Studies Department, and everyone who came out on Tuesday.

Link to Todd Oppenheim's Presentation