Freddie Gray case

3:59 PMThe saddest part of the whole situation is that Freddie Gray’s death was entirely avoidable, had he not been wrongly arrested. Instead, he was, and one “rough ride” later, he died. The officer who initially arrested Gray walked free Monday, a soberingly unsurprising result for the second of six officers who will be tried for his death.

Edward Nero was acquitted of all charges, 13 months after Gray died from a spinal cord injury he sustained in a police vehicle. His death sent Baltimore into a frenzy, with pockets of violence cropping up in the city’s most underserved but highly policed neighborhoods.

The situation was so tense that Major League Baseball moved a scheduled night game to the morning, then didn’t let fans in to watch, for fear of some type of spillover effect of violence. Bizarre doesn’t begin to describe the scene. I remember, because I was inside the ballpark.

On a larger level, we’ve seen this cycle of police violence, then no real accountability, so many times before that the collective conscious of people who consider themselves woke isn’t remotely surprised.

One can debate the specifics of the case, and the specific burdens of proof versus charges levied, until the cows come home, but the apparent reality has set in that the system is not broken. This is the system working. Some people, however, have to be on the victim end in order for the system’s full capabilities to be understood.

When Baltimore District Attorney Marilyn Mosby stood on those steps and promised justice would be served, it was a transcendant moment, even though many legal experts at the time said it was a bad idea to make such a public proclamation. The case was going to be difficult no matter what, but it felt like a win in the name of common decency.

Derrick Coleman, former Syracuse hoops standout and No. 1 overall pick of the 1990 NBA draft, responded on Twitter to Monday’s news of Nero’s acquittal.

Unreal https://t.co/ELPB25kQde

— Derrick Coleman (@44TheLegend) May 23, 2016

no excuse for loss of life

— Derrick Coleman (@44TheLegend) May 23, 2016

Last year, Qadry Ismail, who played for the Baltimore Ravens’ Super Bowl XXXV-winning team and is still a broadcaster with the team wrote this on Facebook:

“The way in which this tragic event has spun out of control is indeed sad. A man lost his life and however it may have been, there needs to be accountability to the highest level of the Baltimore city government. No spin no politics but justice. However, the city as a whole is not a place of evil and malcontent. I have LOVED this greater Baltimore area as a player and now as a resident. I have enjoyed speaking to so many people and their love of the culture of the Baltimore area. I refuse to believe and accept some ignorant narrow minded people who have nothing better to do but loot and break into stores and cause disorder and lawlessness to spoil my view of what Baltimore and the surrounding counties have meant to me. I have met many a police officer as well, and can say the ones I have met are decent family people who do there jobs with integrity. I pray for peace for them and their families; for restoration of order; for those who broke the law to be brought to justice, and for healing for the City of Baltimore.”

Contrarily, you might recall that one Chicago sportscaster recently was fired over a joke he told about the situation.

“Sox in their Freddie Gray road uniforms in Baltimore tonight,” he tweeted on the one-year anniversary of the ghost game.

A man who broadcasts news for a living made a joke about a young man who lost his life for no reason and lost his job. The people who are responsible, but apparently not culpable, are less likely to lose theirs.