Baltimore police officer Caesar Goodson has been found not guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Freddie Gray.
Goodson, 46, drove the police van in which it is believed Gray sustained the spinal cord injury that led to his death last April.
Six officers were charged by the state of Maryland in the death of the 25-year-old black man. Goodson’s charges, seven in total, were the steepest, including that of second-degree depraved heart murder. He also faced three counts of manslaughter.
Two other trials have also ended without convictions for the officers involved. Officer William Porter was not charged when a jury failed to reach a verdict on his manslaughter and assault charges last December. Officer Edward Nero was acquitted on four charges, including reckless endangerment and assault.
Gray was arrested after running away from officers, apparently without cause, and put in the back of a police van. The vehicle made six other stops throughout the city before arriving at the police station, where the man was found unresponsive.
The prosecution alleged that Goodson had not appropriately acted to protect Gray, and that the officer failed to secure the prisoner in the back of the van with a seatbelt. Gray was loaded on the floor of the van with both his legs and hands bound.
Goodson, who is black, was also accused of failing to obtain medical care for Gray after he told Porter he needed it.
Gray’s death sparked days of protests and unrest in Baltimore as the city’s black residents protested treatment by police.