Following the funeral of 25 year-old Freddie Gray, the Baltimore man who suffered a fatal spinal cord injury in police custody, violence erupted as gangs of mostly young men rampaged in neighborhoods of Baltimore, setting buildings on fire and trashing cars. Gray's family had called for a day of calm and reflection, but by mid-afternoon police were confronting angry groups of stone and brick-throwing youth on the streets. By late afternoon, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake had requested the National Guard as the Governor declared a state of emergency. Critics of the mayor argued that the police gave the rioters too much leeway as they looted and in some cases burned buildings in neighborhoods that could ill afford their loss. Supporters argued that damage would have been much worse if the police had been unleashed on the fluid, fast-moving mobs.
Ironically, Loretta Lynch had just been sworn in as Attorney General that morning. The dangerous situation in Baltimore will be the first item on her plate, starting with getting long-awaited answers on the killing of Freddie Gray.
(photo: Getty Images)
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