Before he was ever placed in the police van, Freddie Gray was in need of emergency medical treatment
Baltimore Police have
a major, systemic problem.
When Baltimore State's Attorney Maryliyn Mosby charged six police officers in the death of Freddie Gray, she said they had ignored Gray's pleas for medical care during his arrest and a 45-minute transport van ride.
Records obtained by The Baltimore Sun show that city police often disregard or are oblivious to injuries and illnesses among people they apprehend — in fact, such cases occur by the thousands.
From June 2012 through April 2015, correctional officers at the Baltimore City Detention Center have refused to admit nearly 2,600 detainees who were in police custody, according to state records obtained through a Maryland Public Information Act request.
In other words, Freddie Gray was one of thousands of men and women with emergency medical needs that were ignored in the past three years alone. Before wide scale protests gripped all of Baltimore,
the police chief admitted as much regarding Freddie Gray,
"We know he was not buckled in the transportation wagon as he should have been. No excuses from me. Period," Batts said. "We know our police employees failed to get him medical attention in a timely manner multiple times."
What would be interesting would be to study the race and geographical location of the 2,600 cases of men and women who had their medical emergencies ignored and compare that data to the race and geographical location of the men and women who had their medical needs proactively addressed.
This problem is costing Baltimore, a city struggling to meet so many needs, millions and millions of dollars.
The Sun's examination of more than 100 lawsuits against officers — in which the city paid more than $6 million in court judgments and settlements — found that dozens of residents accused police of inflicting severe injuries during questionable arrests and disregarding appeals for medical attention.
In the case of Freddie Gray,
every video and witness of his arrest shows that he was in agonizing pain before he was placed into a police van. He was screaming out and clearly appears to be completely unable to walk on his own.