Baltimore police statements will be used in Freddie Gray trials

A judge in Baltimore has denied one police officer's bid to suppress statements that she made in relation to the April death of Freddie Gray, a black man.

Judge Barry Williams denied motions to suppress comments made by Sgt. Alicia White and ruled they are admissible in court, Terri Charles, deputy director for the Office of Communications and Public Affairs for Maryland's Administrative Office of the Courts, told Paste BN in an e-mail.

Motions for suppression of statements made by three other officers were withdrawn, Charles said. Earlier Tuesday, Williams denied a motion to suppress statements made by Officer William Porter, Charles said.

The statements in question were provided to internal Baltimore police department investigators after Gray's arrest April 12. Gray, 25, died a week later. The incident prompted massive protests in Baltimore and in other cities.

A sixth defendant, Officer Caesar Goodson Jr., had refused to speak to investigators.

Defense lawyers said the officers provided the statements under duress because they feared that silence would cost them their jobs. Prosecutors said they were voluntary and will be key to obtaining convictions.

Porter faces the first in the series of high-stakes trials Nov. 30. Prosecutors say Porter, charged with manslaughter, reckless endangerment and assault, will be a key witness in the trials of other officers scheduled for early next year.

The trials will be critical for a city battered by riots and political upheaval after Gray's death one week after his arrest. The police chief was later fired and "Justice for Freddie Gray" became a battle cry for demonstrators.

Goodson, who drove the van that transported Gray from the scene of his arrest, faces the most serious charge in the case: second-degree depraved-heart murder. An autopsy report revealed Gray, 25, died of a "high-energy injury" that probably was the result of a sudden stop. Prosecutors accuse Goodson of driving erratically despite knowing that Gray was injured and asking for medical assistance.

The city agreed in September to pay Gray's family $6.4 million to settle civil litigation in the case. Gray family lawyer Billy Murphy said the settlement "represents civil justice." But Fraternal Order of Police president Gene Ryan called the deal "obscene," saying it would damage relations between officers and the city as well as efforts to return the city to "pre-riot normalcy."