Additional prosecutors in Freddie Gray case

Additional prosecutors in Freddie Gray case

An activist law professor calling for Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby to be disbarred over her prosecution of six Baltimore police officers in the arrest and death of Freddie Gray has now taken aim at the two deputy state's attorneys who have argued the cases in court.

John F. Banzhaf III, a public interest law professor at George Washington University known for filing lawsuits in high-profile court cases, said he filed two new complaints with the Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission on Tuesday, calling for the disbarment of Chief Deputy State's Attorney Michael Schatzow and Deputy State's Attorney Janice Bledsoe. He filed a similar complaint last month calling on the commission to disbar Mosby.

Banzhaf said the new complaints are based in part on Circuit Judge Barry G. Williams' acquittal Monday of a third officer, Lt. Brian Rice, of all charges in the case. Banzhaf also noted that Williams previously acquitted two other officers in the case, Edward Nero and Caesar Goodson Jr.

A fourth officer, William Porter, had a mistrial in December. Porter is set to be retried in September, and two other officers, Officer Garrett Miller and Sgt. Alicia White, are to be tried later this month and in October, respectively. All have pleaded not guilty.

Gray, 25, suffered severe spinal cord injuries in the back of a police transport van in April 2015 and died a week later. His death sparked widespread peaceful protests against police brutality in Baltimore, and his funeral was followed by rioting, looting and arson.

Mosby filed charges against the six officers in May 2015.

Mosby's office has said it is barred from commenting on complaints with the Attorney Grievance Commission because of a gag order imposed in the Gray case by Williams.

"The State's Attorney will continue to respect the judge's orders as our office has consistently done throughout these trials," the office said after Banzhaf's complaint against Mosby last month.

Banzhaf alleges that Mosby knew the charges against the officers were not supported by probable cause when she filed them, and should have reassessed her prosecution of the officers after each of Williams' rulings in the case. Banzhaf also points out multiple discovery violations in the officers' trials, in which prosecutors failed to turn over evidence in a timely manner.

In his complaint against Schatzow, Banzhaf argues Mosby's involvement in overseeing the cases "cannot and does not excuse [Schatzow's] conduct since each and every attorney is bound by the same rules of conduct."

He said an argument from Schatzow that he was "just following orders" from Mosby would provide "no defense in a disbarment proceeding."

In his complaint against Bledsoe, Banzhaf argues that as "a very high ranking official, and as one of the two prosecutors primarily responsible for presenting these several cases in court, [Bledsoe] has not only the ethical duty, but also the power, to object and at the very least refuse to participate."

The Attorney Grievance Commission does not comment on pending complaints.

In his rulings in the Gray cases, Williams has repeatedly found prosecutors presented little or no evidence to support the charges alleged. But he has allowed each of the trials to date to proceed, suggesting prosecutors had met the minimal burden of proof needed to have their cases heard in court.