Freddie Gray was a human being. He was not perfect and made mistakes. Cops getting up close to me make me want to run and I have trouble walking. ( I don't smoke,drink or do drugs. ) Being human, should have been enough to guarantee basic rights. This did not happen. Mr. Gray's spinal cord was nearly severed. He never woke up from surgery and died a week later.
There was the question raised "Did Mr. Gray receive a rough ride?"I know of several incidences of this happening in the last 40 plus years of my life. The people were put in the back of a squad car. No seat belt was used. The car raced for a short distance and the cop slammed on his breaks. Injuries depended on how mad the cop behind the wheel was.
People are afraid. The police used a catch phrase, "Under Investigation" People have learned that generally means "If we stall, you will go away." If people don't go away then the police take their time to release information and frequently not all of the information. Steady pressure for answers produces the "You are bothering me facial expression." Beyond that is usually not pleasant for the people seeking answers.
The catch phrase needs to be changed. Change it to "Fact Finding Mission." A new phrase maybe will cause a new thought pattern to form. One that will inspire confidence from the public that facts will be gathered and not hidden. Bad people will be removed from positions of power if they did wrong.
I read material from the following links as well as watched news feeds before blogging.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/24/us/baltimore-freddie-gray-death/
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/freddy-grays-death-baltimore-mayor-demands-answers-n347966
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/freddy-grays-death-baltimore-mayor-demands-answers-n347966
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/04/25/baltimore-cops-should-have-listened-to-the-first-cries-of-pain.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/21/freddie-gray-death-justice-department-investigation_n_7111522.html
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