Burn It Down Again?
BALTIMORE (Reuters) - City officials and schools in Baltimore, a city hit by rioting earlier this year, braced for the possibility of more violent protests as a jury on Tuesday deliberated the case of a police officer charged in the death of a black detainee.
Officer William Porter, 26, is on trial for manslaughter and other charges in Freddie Gray's death from a broken neck suffered in the back of a police van. Gray's death in April triggered protests and rioting and intensified a U.S. debate on police treatment of minorities.
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said she was opening an emergency operations center and pleaded for calm.
Police have canceled all leave in light of the imminent jury decision.
"Whether you agree or whether you disagree with the jury's ultimate verdict, our reaction has to be one of respect in Baltimore's neighborhoods," she said.