Gene Ryan no relation 2015 Baltimore protests
Public response
Public reaction to the death has drawn further parallels to the response to the 2014 shooting of Michael Brown, as part of a larger string of controversial uses of force by police officers in the United States against African Americans. As of April 30, 2015, 22 demonstrations had been held nationwide in direct response to Gray's death or in solidarity with Baltimore. Additionally, the Black Lives Matter movement has protested Gray's death.On April 18, 2015, hundreds of people participated in a protest outside the Baltimore Police Department. Three days later, on April 21, 2015, according to Reuters, "[h]undreds of demonstrators gathered in Baltimore", protesting Gray's death. The next day, Gene Ryan, the president of the local lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, expressed sympathy for the Gray family, but criticized the "rhetoric of protests" and suggested that "the images seen on television look and sound much like a lynch mob". William Murphy, attorney for the Gray family, demanded an "immediate apology and a retraction". Ryan defended his statement two days later, while admitting that the wording was poor. Charles M. Blow of The New York Times, reminded of a column he wrote several years ago, said that comparing protests to lynch mobs was too extreme because it inflames racial tensions by belittling the significance of the history of lynching in the United States.On April 25, 2015, protests were organized in downtown Baltimore, and the protests turned violent as protesters threw rocks and set fires. Many protesters were angered students who had been removed from their primary mode of transportation (city buses) and told to disperse from the city. Tension between the riot police and students grew as time passed, eventually leading to bottles and bricks thrown in protest of the large police presence of a so far peaceful protest of Gray's death At least 34 people were arrested, and 15 officers were injured. On April 27, rioting and looting began after the funeral of Gray, with two patrol cars destroyed and 15 officers reported injured. Protesters looted and burned down a CVS Pharmacy location in downtown Baltimore. In reaction to the unrest, the Maryland State Police sent 82 troopers to protect the city. A Baltimore Orioles baseball game against the Chicago White Sox scheduled for the evening was postponed due to the unrest. The next game commenced as scheduled but, as a precautionary measure, the match was played behind closed doors. The next series against the Tampa Bay Rays was moved to St. Petersburg. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency, and activated the Maryland National Guard. Hogan also activated 500 state troopers for duty in Baltimore and requested an additional 5,000 police officers from other locales.At a press conference, Baltimore's mayor announced there would be a citywide curfew from 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 am. School trips were canceled until mid-May, and Baltimore's city schools were closed on April 28. In addition, both the University of Maryland campus in downtown Baltimore and the Mondawmin Mall were closed early.Protests also took place in other U.S. cities. In New York City, 143 people at Union Square were arrested on April 29, 2015, for blocking traffic and refusing to relocate. On the same day, outside the White House in Washington, D.C., nearly 500 protesters converged without an incident. In Denver, eleven people were arrested as protesters were involved in physical altercations with officers. Other protests in response to Gray's death took place in cities including Chicago, Minneapolis, Miami, Philadelphia, Portland, and Seattle.On May 3, 2015, the National Guard began withdrawing from Baltimore, and the night curfew on the city was lifted. The demobilizing process lasted three days, during which time the state of emergency remained in effect.Spike in Baltimore homicides
In May 2015, there were 43 homicides in Baltimore, making it the deadliest month in 40 years behind August 1972 (45 homicides) and December 1971 (44 homicides). The monthly homicide rate fell to 29 in June 2015 but in July 2015, 45 murders were recorded, tying with the record in 1972. Lt. Gene Ryan, president of Baltimore Fraternal Order of Police, said this was partly due to an increase of confidence among criminals in Baltimore. Then-police commissioner, Anthony Batts, blamed drugs looted from pharmacies during the riots for the spike in crime.The 2015 homicide total as of July 31 was 189 compared to 119 by the end of July 2014. On August 3, in an attempt to solve the cases, Baltimore announced the Baltimore Federal Homicide Task Force. It was a partnership of the Baltimore police and five federal crime-fighting agencies. The agencies would each embed two agents with the Baltimore police to help investigate. On July 8, 2015, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake fired Police Commissioner Anthony Batts, saying that his response to the death of Gray had become a distraction, while the police failed to prevent the spike in homicides.Baltimore ended the year with 344 homicides, the second-highest total behind 1993, when 353 murders occurred. It was also the first time since 1999 that the city recorded at least 300 homicides within a calendar year.
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