Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby may have dropped criminal charges against the remaining officers in the Freddie Gray trial, but she remains entrenched in a legal battle in civil court.
Five of the six officers charged for the death of Gray are suing Mosby, as well as Maj. Samuel Cogen of the Baltimore Sheriff's Office, in civil court for a gamut of causes.
In several lawsuits filed earlier this year, Officers William Porter, Edward Nero, Garrett Miller, Lt. Brian Rice, and Sgt. Alicia White alleged defamation, false arrest, false imprisonment, and violation of constitutional rights, among others.
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The complaint filed by Porter and White stated that Mosby “made statements for purposes of quelling the riots rather than prosecuting police officers who had committed a crime,” and that Mosby “exceeded her authority” and “brought charges against police officers that were wholly unsupported by evidence and probable cause.”
“These officers were humiliated,” attorney Michael Glass, who represents Porter and White, he told NBC News. “Our position is that the charges were brought for a reason other than prosecuting criminal conduct. There was a political motivation and the charges were not supported by evidence.”
Cogen is also party to the lawsuits because was credited as investigating the charges prior to Mosby’s decision to indict the officers.
However, in an affidavit unsealed in the course of Rice's civil lawsuit, Cogen claimed he in fact did not conduct the investigation. He said he merely signed off on the investigation completed by the state’s attorney's office which ultimately led to the charges filed against the officers.
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Mosby took an unprecedented and bold decision when she brought charges against the officers in the death of a Gray, a 25-year-old African American man, who sustained a fatal neck injury while in police custody in April of last year.
Gray’s death ignited riots and violence in Baltimore and sparked a nationwide debate on police brutality.
At press conference after her decision to drop charges, Mosby said her decision was based on a “dismal likelihood” of a conviction after four unsuccessful attempts in netting convictions. Nero, Goodson and Rice were all acquitted and Porter’s trial ended in a hung jury.
All the officers, except Porter, opted for bench trials in their criminal case. They are now requesting a jury trial in their civil suit against Mosby.