Baltimore riots

She can't plea'em out. (1) Cops will simply not go for it; and (2) her constituents want a trial and conviction. Trust me, you are not the first individual to say she is completely unqualified for the position.

In the primary, the alternative was Greg Bernstein. He was well respected by the defense bar and had an office of well qualified prosecutors. My understanding is that, after a year in office, it was defense atty's were telling their clients "These guys don't play. You will get big numbers." All that's gone.

[T]he charging document and Mosby's own words repeatedly stress that he was unlawfully detained with no PC as grounds to state any touching was illegal and therefore any consequence thereafter was illegal.

Well, they had reasonable suspicion to do a Terry stop/"stop and frisk". There is a Supreme Court case which states that an individual's presence in an area known for heavy narcotics trafficking, combined with his unprovoked flight after seeing and being seen by an officer, justified a stop and search.

So, during the pursuit, if an officer shouts "Halt" and person keeps running, has the person now violated a lawful order of the police providing the necessary probable cause for an arrest? I don't know the answer. If it does, it sets the probable cause bar pretty low.

Good synopsis of the case: Person's Flight Can Justify Police Stop and Search, Supreme Court Rules (http://departments.bloomu.edu/crimjust/pages/articles/run_frisk.htm)

The incident that led to the decision today occurred at mid-day on a Chicago street in 1995. As four police cars on narcotics patrol approached the sidewalk where he was standing, Sam Wardlow turned and ran down an alley. An officer caught him and, in a pat-down search, felt a gun in a bag he was carrying under his arm. Justice Stevens said the police officer's testimony about what actually happened was too vague to support a finding of reasonable suspicion. The decision was an application of the court's 1968 decision in Terry v. Ohio, which for the first time authorized a warrantless, brief detention and search of a person acting suspiciously but under circumstances less conclusive than probable cause to believe that a crime had been committed.

As for your comments about police officers in Baltimore, I whole heartedly agree. I would suggest that law enforcement in Baltimore is going to be in a bad way in about two years.

Wave of Baltimore shootings, killings continues

LINK (http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-shootings-homicides-20150511-story.html)

"The increase in violence that has followed the death of Freddie Gray continued through the weekend, with four homicides reported since Saturday, according to Baltimore police.

Ten people were reported shot on Sunday alone, including three who were shot to death within a span of 39 minutes. The violence comes as the city prepares for the Preakness on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course."

Wave of Baltimore shootings, killings continues

LINK (http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-shootings-homicides-20150511-story.html)

"The increase in violence that has followed the death of Freddie Gray continued through the weekend, with four homicides reported since Saturday, according to Baltimore police.

Ten people were reported shot on Sunday alone, including three who were shot to death within a span of 39 minutes. The violence comes as the city prepares for the Preakness on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course."


Baltimore has been a violent city for some time, and I don't think anybody thinks otherwise. That violence will continue to stay until the socioeconomic situation changes and drugs are made legal. Where there is poverty, there will be crime.


The problem here is when the cops present a clear and present danger to the citizens. Police should be held to a higher standard then the average citizen.

Baltimore has been a violent city for some time, and I don't think anybody thinks otherwise. That violence will continue to stay until the socioeconomic situation changes and drugs are made legal. Where there is poverty, there will be crime.

The problem here is when the cops present a clear and present danger to the citizens. Police should be held to a higher standard then the average citizen.

It's not that simple. Sure, poverty = crime, and, yes, violence has been here for a while, but, it is surging above its norms. In my neighborhood, this is the time of year that we normally have kids out causing all sorts of minor vandalism and harassment. Right now, however, they have really been emboldened - throwing rocks at parents, kids, property with impunity. The police response is slow and, once on the scene, "Well, if you have a photo or can positively identify them while we are on the scene, we will see what we can do." They simply aren't going to arrest kids unless the crime happens right in front of them. The good cops feel undermined and, right now, things are going to get worse for law-abiding citizens rather than better.

Baltimore Gun Violence Surges As Officers Say They Feel Intense Scrutiny In Wake Of Freddie Gray Death (http://www.ibtimes.com/baltimore-gun-violence-surges-officers-say-they-feel-intense-scrutiny-wake-freddie-1915594)

Bottom line, not all cops, however, "present a clear and present danger to the citizens." In fact, the vast majority are simply doing a hard job in a violent city. The current perspective, however, lumps good and bad cops together, and the very thing they are accused of (essentially, racial profiling) is the very thing others now do to them i.e. "Because they are (black/a cop), it is more likely than not that they are (a criminal/dangerous)." The hypocrisy is bad enough, the blindness to it is even more frustrating.

As I said, it's just not that simple. Policing is a necessary job. It needs to be done right and, to do so, each cop needs to be judged on their individual actions - not painted with a broad brush.

I hope that changes are made, but I am not holding out much hope for the near future. Too many systemic problems, and an absolute denial of responsibility by the African-American, liberal, Democrats of any role in the creation and prolonging of those systemic problems.

The Baltimore Democrats built - The Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-baltimore-democrats-built/2015/05/04/35be9048-f264-11e4-bcc4-e8141e5eb0c9_story.html)

The same people will be re-elected (in a recent election, a poverty-ridden counsel district elected the son their long time counsel woman despite his criminal conviction and their unchanging economic situation)(the district in question borders/abuts the neighborhood where the riots began).

Pete Welch Baltimore | Welch sworn in to replace his mother on City Council - tribunedigital-baltimoresun (http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-01-10/news/bs-md-ci-council-picks-colleague-20110110_1_agnes-welch-council-members-campaign-finance-reports)

The political machines will be oiled and the proles will remain mindless sheeple who buy into demagoguery of corrupt politicians. The bad neighborhoods will get worse, the ones on the edge will sink into the slop and everyone with any property interests whatsoever will move to the rich white enclaves or leave altogether.

Baltimore has been a violent city for some time, and I don't think anybody thinks otherwise. That violence will continue to stay until the socioeconomic situation changes and drugs are made legal. Where there is poverty, there will be crime.


The problem here is when the cops present a clear and present danger to the citizens. Police should be held to a higher standard then the average citizen.The article cites a noticeable increase in shootings, (fatal up by 30%, nonfatal by 50%, this year) and it's not the police shooting or getting shot at, that the article is talking about.

Hogan signs body camera bill, among 350 others

LINK (http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-mammoth-bill-signing-20150512-story.html)

"Gov. Larry Hogan signed a body camera bill Tuesday that supporters say would pave the way for equipping cops across the state with video equipment.

The law, which takes effect immediately, creates a commission charged with creating statewide guidelines on how police departments should use body cameras and recommending ways to pay for the programs by the end of this year."

As I said, it's just not that simple. Policing is a necessary job. It needs to be done right and, to do so, each cop needs to be judged on their individual actions - not painted with a broad brush.

Not sure the cops are being painted with a broad brush. It's the system that people don't trust, and inherently the cops. When the system protects bad cops, people lose faith in the system and the people under that umbrella. You are correct on the the other points.




Too many systemic problems, and an absolute denial of responsibility by the African-American, liberal, Democrats of any role in the creation and prolonging of those systemic problems.

The same people will be re-elected (in a recent election, a poverty-ridden counsel district elected the son their long time counsel woman despite his criminal conviction and their unchanging economic situation)(the district in question borders/abuts the neighborhood where the riots began).

Considering most of the Baltimore political entity is black, it's definitely not a racial issue. To me, it's more of a socioeconomic issue. The politicians will continue to pander to their voting base to continue to get elected, when in reality they don't give two shits about the people. Greed and corruption sees no color after all.

Getting out of poverty and changing a dreadful inner city is easier in theory than actually implementing. Most of these people are uneducated and been brought up in a element of crime/poverty, and they adapt to their surroundings. Their children will be raise the same way. It does start with people in the community and the parents, but more often than not, it's a cycle that's extremely hard to break.


The bad neighborhoods will get worse, the ones on the edge will sink into the slop and everyone with any property interests whatsoever will move to the rich white enclaves or leave altogether.


This sounds like the plot of Robocop. When can we expect OCP to come buy up all the inner city realty and rebuild it into Delta City? :joecool:

Wait ... who could have foreseen this?!?

Violent crime up, arrests down in Baltimore | Maryland News - WBAL Home (http://www.wbaltv.com/news/violent-crime-up-arrests-down-in-baltimore/33109338)