#BaltimoreRiots: Violence Breaks Out in Baltimore After Freddie Gray’s Funeral

BALTIMORE— Scott Calvert and Kris Maher report: Violent confrontations between demonstrators and police broke out in this city for the second time in three days, hours after thousands of people attended Monday’s funeral for Freddie Gray , a 25-year-old black man who died in police custody this month.

“Right now, we’re seeing unprecedented violence throughout the city.”

— Darryl DeSousa, chief of patrol for the city police department

Fifteen officers were injured and two were hospitalized, police officials said. Earlier Monday a police spokesman said the injuries included broken bones. One patrol car was attacked and at least one more engulfed in flames as looters ransacked stores. A CVS store was looted, then apparently set on fire. At least 27 people were arrested.

“It is so frustrating that people think that this makes sense, to destroy our community.”

— Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake

The altercations took place along several busy intersections near the Mondawmin Mall in northwest Baltimore, in a neighborhood near the church where the funeral was held. Demonstrators pelted lines of police in riot gear with rocks, bricks and other objects.

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake hugs a member of the Gray family during Freddie Gray’s funeral. Photo: Shawn Hubbard for The Wall Street Journal

Police responded with tear gas and set up a cordon seeking to restore order. Chunks of bricks, rocks and broken glass littered the streets, and smoke from burning cars and trash cans rose into the sky. The Maryland Transit Administration closed several subway stops near the unrest, and the Baltimore Orioles baseball game was canceled.

“It began as a cause and is ending in pure ignorance.”

— Sean Berry-Bey, a 33-year-old resident of West Baltimore

“Right now, we’re seeing unprecedented violence throughout the city,” said Darryl DeSousa, chief of patrol for the city police department.

[Read the full text here, at the Wall Street Journal]

Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency Monday evening, activating the Maryland National Guard. Maryland State Police troopers arrived on the scene earlier in the evening, as did police from several counties, including Prince George’s County, outside Washington.

Demonstrators throw rocks at police in Baltimore after the funeral of Freddie Gray on Monday. Photo: Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake imposed a citywide 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew beginning Tuesday evening and lasting at least a week. “It is so frustrating that people think that this makes sense, to destroy our community,” the mayor said.

Sean Berry-Bey, a 33-year-old resident of West Baltimore, said she was disturbed by the sight of looters of all ages at a sneaker store, a hair salon and a check-cashing business. “It began as a cause and is ending in pure ignorance,” Ms. Berry-Bey said.

Several officials and people on the street said the scene recalled the 1968 riots in the city after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., when six people died amid days of mass looting, arson and clashes with police…(read more)

WSJ

Write to Scott Calvert at scott.calvert@wsj.com

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