Baltimore To Pay $3.5M To Businesses In Freddie Gray Unrest

BALTIMORE CITY, MD — Businesses damaged in violent protests following the 2015 death of Freddie Gray could soon see a payout.

Baltimore City will spend $3.5 million to settle a federal lawsuit brought by dozens of businesses that were damaged by fire and looting, multiple news outlets report.

"The Solicitor’s Office believes that this resolution is in the best interests of Baltimore residents,” Sydney Burns, associate communications director for the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement told WJZ-TV.

Approximately 70 people sued the city in 2017, claiming officials failed to prevent the violence that followed the arrest and death of Gray in April 2015, despite warnings that there would be violence, The Baltimore Sun reported.

The Board of Estimates must approve the settlement by April 18 for it to become official, according to the newspaper.

SEE ALSO:

• Baltimore Police: 6 Officers Suspended After Freddie Gray Death
• Man Dies Week After Mysterious Baltimore City Arrest
• Freddie Gray Was a 'Martyr,' Says Jesse Jackson at Funeral
• Baltimore Police Seek Witnesses in Freddie Gray Case
• Thousands Expected At Baltimore Rally Saturday After Death In Police Custody
• General Assembly Proposes Police Conduct Reforms
• Freddie Gray Case: Demonstrators Cheer Decision by Judge
• Trial Date Set for Six Baltimore Police Officers in Freddie Gray Case
• Baltimore Calls for Change After Officer Acquitted in Freddie Gray Murder Trial

Police arrested Gray along the 1700 block of Presbury Street in west Baltimore at 8:40 a.m. on Sunday, April 12. He ultimately died in police custody.

An autopsy from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner showed that Gray's spinal cord injury resulted in his death.

His death resulted in large protests, some violent, throughout Baltimore and the country.

In Baltimore, close to 400 businesses were damaged or destroyed, resulting in approximately $13 million in damages, The Baltimore Sun reported.

According to WBFF, three of the six officers involved in Gray's death were acquitted of charges they caused his death. Charges against the other officers were eventually dropped.