Peaceful demonstrations in Baltimore escalated into clashes with police

More than a thousand protesters took to the streets of Baltimore to protest the death of a black man detained by police a week ago.

However, after a few hours, peaceful demonstrations escalated into clashes with the police: the demonstrators smashed the windows of police stations and shop windows.

At least 12 people were arrested.

According to the police, 12 April 25-year-old Freddie Gray, walking down the street and meeting the eyes of a police patrol, suddenly rushed away. After he was detained and placed in a police van, he began to behave violently, and he had to be chained in handcuffs hand and foot.

It is not yet clear when and how exactly Gray suffered serious injuries to his neck and spine, from which he fell into a coma and died a week later.

His twin sister Frederica Gray called for calm, saying her family wanted to stop the violence. When the clashes began on Saturday night, she said: "Freddie Gray wouldn't want this."

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, speaking alongside Frederica Gray, said she was "deeply disappointed" by the riots, blaming provocateurs.

Six police officers were suspended from work due to the death of a black man, and an internal police investigation is currently underway.

Gray's death is the latest in a series of incidents in police custody this year. The deaths of black men at the hands of police have sparked many mass protests.

From Sunday in Baltimore every day there were promotions however, the demonstration on Saturday was the largest.

A group of protesters marched from the Sandtown area, where Gray was arrested, to the police station, where an ambulance arrived at Gray after he was taken in a police car with injuries.

Another demonstration took place near the city government building.

“Everything changed on Saturday, and the fight will intensify,” Malik Shabazz of Black Lawyers for Justice told a local television station.

"It doesn't become commonplace if a person has a broken spine, a broken back, and there is no trace of justice," he added.

Nevertheless, in the evening, many protesters began to smash shop windows, besides, there were clashes with baseball fans before the game between the teams of Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Red Sox.

Police Commissioner Anthony Butts admitted at a press conference on Friday that police repeatedly denied Gray the necessary medical care.

However, the police union criticized Commissioner Butts' statements, saying they were premature and "politically motivated."

Police will report on the results of the investigation 1 May. The protesters hope that the six policemen will be charged and promise to continue the protests if this does not happen.