This isn’t new, it was just hard to figure out. And I wanted to add it to my Baltimore Primer. What exactly was argued in the acquittal of Officer Nero was hard to figure out. Mostly because the State’s Attorney, Mosby, has repeated changed her story. Initially she claimed the stop of Freddie Gray illegal and the arrest was illegal.…
Category: Police
Is this what the Ferguson Effect looks like?
Take this fightat North Avenue Beach in Chicago. Seems like mostly a bunch of stupid frat bro’s, one wearing an SAE tank top. (“These people” also have problems.) Why does does this have to do with the Ferguson (or “Viral Video”) Effect? Well, if you’re looking for an example of how fear or negative publicity can impact policing and create…
All in the Family
Here’s another one for the record books. This isn’t the first time somebody has been shot at a funeral. Kevin Rector and Justin George of the Sun observe, “Gunfire has marred other services in recent years to mourn deceased victims of violence in Baltimore.” And this is probably not even the first time a father has been shot at his…
Good News From NYC, Not-Bad News From Baltimore, Horrible News from Chicago
In New York City, year to date, murders continue to be lower than last year (124 vs 140) and higher than record-low 2014 (112). Given the rise of homicide in so many other cities, this is great news. In Baltimore there were 26 murders in May. It’s hard to call this exactly “good news.” But last year, post riot, there…
The New York Times goes to the Hood
I applaud any effort to focus on the victims of violence in America. Too often nobody knows or cares about this real carnage in this country. So over Memorial Day weekend the New York Times went to the bad parts of Chicago to sightsee: [We] dispatched a team of reporters, photographers and videographers to virtually all of the shooting scenes…
Burgled in NOLA
We were burgled while out eating dinner in New Orleans. Not that I knew it then, but right before we left the home, somebody in the St. Roch League of Non-Aligned Residents reported: A 30ish black male about 5’6″ wearing a blue t shirt and gold shorts on a light colored bike (off white, I think) was hopping fences on…
“Nero Should Never Have Been Charged”
Writing in the Baltimore Sun, co-authored with my friend, Leon “HL Mencken” Taylor: Mr. Nero, who had but a tangential role in Gray’s detention, should never have been charged. He committed no crime. … The prosecutor, in her desire to achieve “justice” for Freddie Gray, wanted somebody — anybody it seems — to pay for his death. But justice doesn’t…
“Baltimore’s Dangerous Prosecutors”
The latest from Page Croyder. It’s all good, but this is the part that clarified what exactly was being argued: They argued to trial judge Barry Williams that in the 2-3 minutes after Gray was handcuffed, but before the illegal knife was found on him, Nero, by not instantly finding out why the supervisor wanted Gray detained, committed a crime.…
“The Chop Leaves the City”
Here is one person’s decision to pack up and leave the city. It’s well worth reading. It’s a short move, two miles north, to the burbs. And he’s taking his tax dollars with him. This is especially worth reading if you think the biggest problem facing Baltimore is racism and policing. Or if you’re privileged enough to live in a…
Officer Nero Acquitted on all Charges
Good. Judge Williams used the law. There was no case. I don’t find this surprising. But then I’ve learned to be surprised by these absurd trials. And I was speaking to a friend here in New Orleans who, naturally, assumed the officers are guilty. She hadn’t read my primer and had no idea this trial had nothing (except politics) to…