Detained Baltimore man who later died of spinal injuries lacked seat belt in police van
BALTIMORE — No video captured what happened to Freddie Gray inside the police van where officers heaved him into a metal compartment after pinning him to a sidewalk. The cause of his fatal spine injury has not been revealed.
But a troubling detail emerged as hundreds of protesters converged on City Hall again Thursday: He was not only handcuffed and put in leg irons, but left without a seat belt during his trip to the station, a police union’s lawyer said.
Unbelted detainees have been paralyzed and even killed by rough rides in what used to be called “paddy wagons.” It even has a name: “nickel rides,” referring to cheap amusement park thrills.
Police brutality against prisoners being transported was addressed just six months ago in a plan released by Baltimore officials to reduce this misconduct. Department rules updated nine days before Gray’s arrest clearly state that all detainees shall be strapped in by seat belts or “other authorized restraining devices” for their own safety after arrest.
Similar case in ’05
Gray was not belted in, said attorney Michael Davey, who represents at least one of the officers under investigation.
The Gray family’s lawyer, Billy Murphy, said “his spine was 80 percent severed” while in custody. It’s not clear whether he was injured by officers in the street or while being carried in the van.
But if it happened on the way to the station, it wouldn’t be the first such injury in Baltimore: Dondi Johnson died of a fractured spine in 2005 after he was arrested for urinating in public and transported without a seat belt, with his hands cuffed behind his back.
It also has happened in Philadelphia, where police in 2001 barred transportation of prisoners without padding or belts after The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the city had paid $2.3 million to settle lawsuits over intentionally rough rides, which permanently paralyzed two people.
Gray fled on foot and was captured on April 12 after an officer “made eye contact” with him outside a public housing complex, police said. Videos show Gray screaming on the ground before being dragged into a van.
Justice probe
The U.S. Justice Department is investigating whether Gray’s civil rights were violated, and an internal police investigation will be delivered by May 1 to the state’s attorney’s office, which will consider filing any criminal charges.
But some details have been made public as authorities try to restore trust with public demands for transparency and justice.
Commissioner Anthony Batts said Monday that officers repeatedly ignored Gray’s requests for medical attention before he was hospitalized in critical condition. “He asked for an inhaler, and at one or two of the stops it was noticed that he was having trouble breathing,” Batts said.