UPDATE - US: charges dropped against police in Freddie Gray case

ADDS AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REACTION

By Esra Kaymak Avci

WASHINGTON (AA) – All charges were dropped Wednesday against three remaining police officers in the case of a black man who died in police custody in Maryland after suffering a broken neck, according to media reports.

The announcement came during a pretrial hearing for officer Garret Miller. Two other officers, Sgt. Alicia White and William Porter had trials scheduled for the fall.

Earlier this month, Lt. Brian Rice, 42, the highest-ranking officer in Gray's case was found not guilty on all charges.

In total, six officers -- three white and three black -- were charged in the case. Three previous trials resulted in two acquittals and one mistrial.

With the decision Wednesday all charges were dropped against Miller, White and Officer William Porter, whose first trial ended in a mistrial and a new trial was supposed to begin in September.

Following the government's announcement, Amnesty International called for the strengthening of laws governing lethal force by police in Maryland and across the country.

Marking the end of the case without a conviction for any of the six, the Baltimore City State Attorney's decision was surprising as the incident had caused days of protests by activists who found Gray's death unjust due to unnecessary force by police during his arrest.

Speaking to reporters after the decision, the State's Attorney for Baltimore City, Marilyn J. Mosby, said she was not anti-police but "anti-police brutality.

"My office has never wavered in our commitment to seeking justice on his behalf," she said, according to CNN.

Gray was arrested April 12 for carrying what police said was an illegal switchblade and placed in the back of a police transport van. He fell into a coma a short while after and taken to a hospital where he died one week later.

Witnesses say Gray was subjected to unnecessary force by police during his arrest and some have suggested he may have been given a “rough ride” in which police place a suspect into a van without a seatbelt and then drive erratically to cause injury.

A medical examiner ruled Gray’s death a homicide, sparking nationwide protest against police brutality and riots in Baltimore.