This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Baltimore • Mourners on Sunday filed for hours past the coffin of the man who died after suffering serious injuries in the custody of Baltimore police, somberly paying respects after a night of violent protests.
Throughout Sunday afternoon, a steady stream of people entered the Vaughn Green East funeral home for a wake for Freddie Gray, 25, the black man who died a week after an encounter with police left him with grave spinal injuries.
Mourners passed by Gray's silk-draped white coffin where he lay dressed in a white shirt, black pants, white sneakers and an all-white Los Angeles Dodgers baseball cap.
Above the coffin lid was a floral arrangement, and inside the lid was a pillow with a screen-printed picture of Gray flanked by doves and the quote "Peace, Y'all" at the bottom edge.
Mourners also gathered outside. Some held up signs that read, "We remember Freddie" and "Our Hearts Are With The Gray Family."
Melissa McDonald, 36, who said she was Gray's cousin, wore a shirt with "Freddie Forever" printed on the back. She described her cousin as a nonviolent person.
"He didn't deserve to die the way he did," she said.
Gray's funeral is planned for Monday.
At a church service earlier Sunday, the Rev. Jamal Bryant told churchgoers, including members of Gray's family, at Empowerment Temple AME Church that "somebody is going to have to pay" for Gray's death. Bryant told churchgoers that if "you're black in America, your life is always under threat." Bryant also talked about the violence that erupted Saturday night during what began as a peaceful demonstration attended by more than a thousand people. About 34 people were arrested, according to Baltimore Police Department, and six police officers suffered minor injuries.
J.M. Giordano, a photo editor at Baltimore's City Paper, said police beat him as he covered one of the protests in west Baltimore. A video posted to the newspaper's website Sunday shows at least two police officers in riot gear hitting and kicking Giordano as the person filming screams, "He's a photographer! He's press!"
Sait Serkan Gurbuz, a photographer with Reuters, said police detained him as he was shooting photographs of the scuffle. He declined to comment further. A statement from Reuters said police also cited Gurbuz for failure to obey orders.
"We hope that the department will dismiss the citation and, going forward, respect the First Amendment right of the press to lawfully take images in the public interest," Reuters said.
Roughly 1,200 protesters gathered at City Hall on Saturday afternoon, officials said, to protest Gray's death, which has prompted near-daily demonstrations since he died April 19. Gray was arrested after he made eye contact with officers and ran away, police said. Officers held him down, handcuffed him and loaded him into the van. While inside, he became irate and leg cuffs were put on him, police have said.
Gray asked for medical help several times, beginning before he was placed in the van. After a 30-minute ride that included three stops, paramedics were called.
Authorities have not explained how or when Gray's spine was injured.