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| A man carries items from a store as police vehicles burn, Monday, April 27, 2015, after the funeral of Freddie Gray in Baltimore. Gray died from spinal injuries about a week after he was arrested and transported in a Baltimore Police Department van. |
BALTIMORE
(AP) -- Rioters plunged part of Baltimore into chaos Monday, torching a
pharmacy, setting police cars ablaze and throwing bricks at officers
hours after thousands mourned the man who died from a severe spinal
injury he suffered in police custody.
The
governor declared a state of emergency and called in the National Guard
to restore order, and Attorney General Loretta Lynch, in her first day
on the job, said she would send Justice Department officials to the city
in coming days. A weeklong, daily curfew was imposed beginning Tuesday
from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., the mayor said. At least 15 officers were hurt,
and some two dozen people were arrested. Two officers remained
hospitalized, police said.
"The National Guard
represents the last resort in restoring order," Gov. Larry Hogan told a
news conference.
"I have not made this decision lightly."
Officers
wearing helmets and wielding shields occasionally used pepper spray to
keep the rioters back. For the most part, though, they relied on line
formations to keep protesters at bay.
Monday's
riot was the latest flare-up over the mysterious death of Freddie Gray,
whose fatal encounter with officers came amid the national debate over
police use of force, especially when black suspects are involved. Gray
was African-American. Police have declined to specify the races of the
six officers involved in his arrest, all of whom have been suspended
with pay while they are under investigation.
Emergency
officials were constantly thwarted as they tried to restore calm.
Firefighters trying to put out a blaze at a CVS store were hindered by
someone who sliced holes in a hose connected to a fire hydrant, spraying
water all over the street and nearby buildings. Later Monday night,
mayoral spokesman Kevin Harris confirmed that a massive fire that had
erupted in East Baltimore was also related to the riots. He said the
Mary Harvin Transformation Center was under construction and that no one
was believed to be in the building at the time. The center is described
online as a community-based organization that supports youth and
families.
The smell of burned rubber wafted in
the air in one neighborhood where youths were looting a liquor store.
Police stood still nearby as people drank looted alcohol. Glass and
trash littered the streets, and other small fires were scattered about.
One person from a church tried to shout something from a megaphone as
two cars burned.
"Too many people have spent
generations building up this city for it to be destroyed by thugs, who
in a very senseless way, are trying to tear down what so many have
fought for, tearing down businesses, tearing down and destroying
property, things that we know will impact our community for years," said
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, a lifelong resident of the city.
Gray's
family was shocked by the violence and was lying low; instead, they
hoped to organize a peace march later in the week, said family attorney
Billy Murphy. He said they did not know the riot was going to happen and
urged calm.
"They don't want this movement nationally to be marred by violence," he said. "It makes no sense."
Police
urged parents to locate their children and bring them home. Many of
those on the streets appeared to be African-American youths, wearing
backpacks and khaki pants that are a part of many public school
uniforms.
The riot broke out just as high
school let out, and at a key city bus depot for student commuters around
Mondawmin Mall, a shopping area northwest of downtown Baltimore. It
shifted about a mile away later to the heart of an older shopping
district and near where Gray first encountered police. Both commercial
areas are in African-American neighborhoods.
Later
in the day, people began looting clothing and other items from stores
at the mall, which became unprotected as police moved away from the
area. About three dozen officers returned, trying to arrest looters but
driving many away by firing pellet guns and rubber bullets.
Downtown
Baltimore, the Inner Harbor tourist attractions and the city's baseball
and football stadiums are nearly 4 miles away. While the violence had
not yet reached City Hall and the Camden Yards area, the Orioles
canceled Monday's game for safety precautions.
In
a statement issued Monday, Attorney General Lynch said she would send
Justice Department officials to the city in coming days, including
Vanita Gupta, the agency's top civil rights lawyer. The FBI and Justice
Department are investigating Gray's death for potential criminal civil
rights violations.
Many who had never met Gray
gathered earlier in the day in a Baltimore church to bid him farewell
and press for more accountability among law enforcement.
The 2,500-capacity New Shiloh Baptist church was filled with mourners. But even the funeral could not ease mounting tensions.
Police
said in a news release sent while the funeral was underway that the
department had received a "credible threat" that three notoriously
violent gangs are now working together to "take out" law enforcement
officers.
A small group of mourners started
lining up about two hours ahead of Monday's funeral. Placed atop Gray's
body was a white pillow with a screened picture of him. A projector
aimed at two screens on the walls showed the words "Black Lives Matter
& All Lives Matter."
The service lasted
nearly two hours, with dignitaries in attendance including former
Maryland representative and NAACP leader Kweisi Mfume and current
Maryland Rep. John Sarbanes.
Erica Garner, 24,
the daughter of Eric Garner, attended Gray's funeral. She said she came
after seeing video of Gray's arrest, which she said reminded her of her
father's shouts that he could not breathe when he was being arrested on
a New York City street. Garner died during the confrontation.
"It's
like there is no accountability, no justice," she said. "It's like
we're back in the `50s, back in the Martin Luther King days. When is our
day to be free going to come?"
With the Rev.
Jesse Jackson sitting behind him, the Rev. Jamal Bryant gave a rousing
and spirited eulogy for Freddie Gray, a message that received a standing
ovation from the crowded church.
Bryant said Gray's death would spur further protests, and he urged those in the audience to join.
"Freddie's
death is not in vain," Bryant said. "After this day, we're going to
keep on marching. After this day, we're going to keep demanding
justice."
Gray was arrested after making eye
contact with officers and then running away, police said. He was held
down, handcuffed and loaded into a van without a seat belt. Leg cuffs
were put on him when he became irate inside.
He
asked for medical help several times even before being put in the van,
but paramedics were not called until after a 30-minute ride. Police have
acknowledged he should have received medical attention on the spot
where he was arrested, but they have not said how his spine was injured.
