Post by Logan on May 14, 2016 10:13:57 GMT -6
Freddie Gray case: Officer Nero's attorneys seek to minimize his role in Gray's arrest
Attorneys for Baltimore Police Officer Edward Nero sought Thursday to minimize his role in the arrest of Freddie Gray, saying that he pursued the 25-year-old based on a supervisor's calls for help and only touched him to try to find his inhaler.
But as Nero's bench trial began in a downtown courtroom, prosecutors argued that the officers who detained Gray on April 12, 2015 lacked legal justification to do so, making his arrest an assault. Legal observers have said it is an unusual theory, and the case is expected to involve complex arguments about the authority of officers to stop citizens.
The trial, which could last five days, also involves allegations that Nero failed to care for Gray when he did not secure him with a seat belt in the back of the arrest van, where Gray ultimately suffered a fatal spine injury.
Nero, 30, has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges of second-degree assault and misconduct related to Gray's arrest, and reckless endangerment and a second count of misconduct stemming from the way Gray was loaded into the van.
Read more: www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/freddie-gray/bs-md-ci-nero-trial-day-one-20160512-story.html
Attorneys for Baltimore Police Officer Edward Nero sought Thursday to minimize his role in the arrest of Freddie Gray, saying that he pursued the 25-year-old based on a supervisor's calls for help and only touched him to try to find his inhaler.
But as Nero's bench trial began in a downtown courtroom, prosecutors argued that the officers who detained Gray on April 12, 2015 lacked legal justification to do so, making his arrest an assault. Legal observers have said it is an unusual theory, and the case is expected to involve complex arguments about the authority of officers to stop citizens.
The trial, which could last five days, also involves allegations that Nero failed to care for Gray when he did not secure him with a seat belt in the back of the arrest van, where Gray ultimately suffered a fatal spine injury.
Nero, 30, has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges of second-degree assault and misconduct related to Gray's arrest, and reckless endangerment and a second count of misconduct stemming from the way Gray was loaded into the van.
Read more: www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/freddie-gray/bs-md-ci-nero-trial-day-one-20160512-story.html