ANALYSIS/OPINION:
All eyes and ears are on Baltimore — and if they aren’t, they should be because the die is cast.
Baltimore Police Officer William G. Porter Jr. began defending himself Monday against a jury of his peers. That is to say, the defense and prosecutors agreed on a pool of 75 jurors — and 12 of them will decide whether he will spend much of the remainder of his life in prison for his role in the death of Freddie Gray, who suffered mortal injury while in police custody.
Officer Porter is one of the six officers charged in the Gray case, and he is the first to go to trial.
Why he is defendant No. 1 is as critical to the defense and prosecution as it is to the American justice system and to critics who instantly indict the system.
Everything entered as evidence in Officer Porter’s trial will affect what happens and doesn’t happen in the trials of five other officers.
SEE ALSO: Freddie Gray case: Jury selection begins for Baltimore officer charged
Why?
Officer Porter is a chief eyewitness, the cog in the wheel, as the saying goes.
Riding shotgun, Officer Porter responded to the call for assistance from Officer Caesar R. Goodson Jr., defendant No. 2 and the driver of the police van that transported Gray. While in the back of the van, Gray was handcuffed, shackled and bounced around unable to brace or protect himself. Gray also was not wearing a seat belt.
Officer Goodson, like Officer Porter, is charged with reckless endangerment, involuntary manslaughter, second-degree assault and misconduct in office. He also is charged with two counts of manslaughter by vehicle.
More important, unlike Officer Porter and the other defendants, Officer Goodson also is charged with “depraved heart murder,” which means he was indifferent to Gray being injured or even dying as he drove the van.
Officer Goodson seemingly played roulette, and Gray died as a result.
SEE ALSO: White House undergoes holiday lockdown after man jumps fence
None of the other defendants faces a depraved heart murder charge, and that strongly suggests that Officer Porter is expected to testify that he told Officer Goodson that Gray needed medical attention, but Officer Goodson “deprived” Gray.
Oh, and in short: The vehicle was used to willfully harm Gray.
Similar to vehicular manslaughter charges brought against a drunken driver, the charges against Officer Goodson imply that he drove the police van in a manner that harmed Gray, who, handcuffed and shackled, was unable to defend himself.
Following the officers’ indictments, critics spoke fast and furious, many claiming prosecutorial overreach by State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby. Some claimed politics were in play, others cited appeasing protesters in search of racial and socio-economic justice.
Whatever your claim, the bottom line remains: Officer Porter is the No. 1 defendant because he is the city’s leading eyewitness. The No. 1 eyewitness — Freddie Gray — is dead.
Gray’s body, in life and in the death, spoke volumes.
Gray was alive when he first was in the van. Gray was alive when Officer Porter checked on him. Gray was alive when Officer Porter said he needed medical attention but was denied.
As the schedule currently stands, Officer Goodson is set to begin defending himself on Jan. 6, and the other defendants about four weeks later, and so on, and so on.
That is what Baltimore Circuit Court Judge Barry Glenn Williams expects. But lots of things could interrupt those scheduled events.
Officer Porter could change his mind about his statement to investigators, he could give unexpected testimony or his truth-telling could be ripped apart by other officers and/or character witnesses, among other things.
If Officer Porter further indicts Officer Goodson and the other defendants, the bumpy and errant ride that Gray was forced to take will shatter what’s known as the “Blue Wall of Silence.”
Judge Williams issued a gag order in October, but defense attorneys and police union officials have long sought a change of venue in the high-profile case, which some media wrongfully call the “Freddie Gray trial.”
Indeed, every one of the 75 prospective jurors said in court Monday that they knew of the Gray case. They would have been lying if they had said otherwise.
Practically everything leading up to the trial of Officer Porter has drawn widespread regional media coverage for all the right reasons.
But let’s be clear: This trial is not about Freddie Gray, the rioters and looters, the mayor or the state’s attorney, the city of Baltimore or the Baltimore Police Department.
The trial is about six officers who were involved in the death of Freddie Gray.
And that’s a fact.
• Deborah Simmons can be reached at dsimmons@washingtontimes.com.
• Deborah Simmons can be reached at dsimmons@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.