Baltimore Riots 2015 : Freddy Gray Death in Custody

Rioters plunged part of Baltimore into chaos Monday, torching a pharmacy, setting police cars ablaze and throwing bricks at officers just hours after the funeral of 25-year-old Freddie Gray, a black man who died from a mysterious spinal injury sustained while in police custody earlier this month.



 The governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan, declared a state of emergency and activated the National Guard to help with the violence and rioting.

He signed the order late Monday at the request of the city.

At an evening news conference Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said the city is imposing a curfew, saying "thugs" were trying to tear down the city and incite violence. The curfew is set for 10 p.m. until 5 a.m. (EDT) for one week starting on Tuesday, with exceptions for work and medical emergencies.



 At least 15 officers were hurt, and some two dozen people were arrested during clashes Monday with hundreds of youths who pelted the officers with rocks, bricks, glass bottles and other objects.



 Two officers remained hospitalized, police said.

During the daylight hours television footage showed at least one police cruiser in flames and crowds of looters breaking into stores.

The clashes started near the Mondawmin Mall, just blocks from Gray's funeral, and spread out over a wide area as a line of police officers pushed them back.



 At one point, a police car was surrounded and destroyed by people jumping on it. Police initially showed restraint on Monday, but then began arresting people and using pepper spray on rioters.

In the late afternoon schools, businesses and train stations began closing in the city of 662,000 people, 64 km from the nation's capital.



 The Baltimore Orioles professional baseball game was cancelled, as were all school trips scheduled into the city this week.

Baltimore schools will be closed on Tuesday.

Firefighters battled several blazes on Monday evening, including a fire under investigation that consumed a church's senior center under construction in East Baltimore.

Police said looting and assaults against officers continued into the night.



 The riot occurred just hours after the funeral for Gray, whose family along with pastors and city officials had pleaded for peaceful demonstrations after some arrests and injuries at protests over the weekend.

"It is disappointing just a few hours after putting Gray to rest," Reverend Jamal Bryant who spoke at the funeral told reporters. "This is not what the family asked for today of all days. This was a day of sacred closure."