BALTIMORE (AP) - Baltimore streets once filled with rock- and bottle-throwing protesters were quiet and nearly empty of civilians as residents heeded an overnight curfew enforced by 3,000 police and National Guardsmen.
The curfew, in effect from 10 p.m. Tuesday to 5 a.m. Wednesday, got off to a rocky start, when as many as 200 protesters showed no immediate signs of going home.
A line of police behind riot shields hurled tear gas canisters and fired pepper balls at the stragglers to enforce the curfew, which was imposed to prevent a repeat of Monday's riots, the worst in Baltimore since 1968.
Demonstrators threw bottles at police, and picked up the canisters and hurled them back at officers. No immediate arrests or serious injuries were reported, and the crowd rapidly dispersed. It was down to just a few dozen people within minutes.
For the people arrested in Baltimore under the state of emergency, there could be a longer wait than usual to see a District Court official.
Normally, state law requires that people arrested without warrants appear before a court official within 24 hours of their arrests.
But as part of the state of emergency declared Monday by Republican Gov. Larry Hogan following unrest in the city, the governor extended the period to no later than 47 hours. That's according to a letter he sent Tuesday to Judge Barbara Baer Waxman, the administrative judge for the Baltimore District Court.
"This exercise of my authority is necessary to protect the public safety and to address the more than 200 arrests that were made by Baltimore Police Department and other law enforcement officials," Hogan wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press.
The Aftermath
Tuesday found many people in Baltimore cleaning up the streets of the debris left behind by the Monday night riots. Delmarva Public Radio Anchor Jamyla Krempel is in Baltimore helping with the cleanup and Delmarva Public Radio's Don Rush talked with her about her reaction to the riots and the dynamics playing out in Baltimore.
Wicomico Contingent
There was a contingent of deputies from the Wicomico County Sheriff’s office in Baltimore yesterday to help out with crowd control in the aftermath of Monday night’s rioting.
Sheriff Mike Lewis went with a small number of officers taking with them their bullet-proof vehicle.
Lewis told the Salisbury Daily Times that he went with his team of deputies when Governor Larry Hogan called for an additional 5-thousand police from the Mid-Atlantic region.
Meanwhile, Salisbury City Council President Jake Day was in Baltimore as part of his National Guard unit.
Timeline (AP)
12:12 a.m. Wednesday
At midnight Tuesday, Baltimore police arrested one man wearing a Wu-Tang Clan T-shirt for violating the 10 p.m. curfew near the scene of Tuesday night's demonstration.
Police placed him in plastic handcuffs and arrested him without incident.
The man, who declined to give his name, said while he was being arrested that he was out at that hour because he had car problems. He said no animosity toward the officers.
"They're doing their job," he said.
Officers placed him in a prisoner transport van and told him they were taking him about 2 miles to Central Booking.
11:40 p.m.
Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts says a citywide curfew seems to be working.
Batts told a news conference shortly before midnight Tuesday that only 10 people had been arrested following the 10 p.m. curfew, including seven for violating the curfew. He said two people were arrested for looting and one for disorderly conduct.
Batts said he was pleased with the efforts of dozens of community organizers, clergy and neighborhood activists who urged residents to remain calm.
"The curfew is, in fact, working," Batts said. "Citizens are safe. The city is stable. We hope to maintain it that way."
Officials called for the 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew following riots that started hours after Freddie Gray's funeral Monday. He died after being injured in police custody.
11:00 p.m.
An hour after the city-wide curfew began, the intersection is mostly clear except for police and the media which is exempt from the curfew. Other officers are moving into the neighborhood beyond the intersection where a CVS was looted to get stragglers to go home.
Officials called for the 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew after riots started hours after Freddie Gray's funeral. He died after being injured in police custody.
10:50 p.m.
Military vehicles are flying through the street trying to disperse the last of the crowd.
There are still dozens of people, but they are further back from the intersection as police continue to hold their line and slowly advance, using a great deal of restraint.
The Baltimore Police twitter feed said at 10:34 p.m.: "People who remain on the street - who do not meet the exceptions - are now in violation of the emergency curfew." Moments after the tweet, dozens of police advanced across the intersection. Reporters said a crowd had dwindled as people ran down side streets.
People are protesting the death of Freddie Gray, who died following injuries he suffered in police custody.
10:35 p.m.
Smoke bombs or fireworks thrown from the crowd sent acrid smoke billowing around a square where dozens of riot police stood with shields in front of them, lined shoulder to shoulder against the crowd. Police advanced some steps forward into the intersection but there were no immediate signs of any arrests being made.
According to local reports people scattered, running in different directions down side streets. The smoke from the incendiary devices wafted through the square. Local reporters said the tension rose after people threw water bolts and other debris. People covered their faces as they ran, some coughing.
Baltimore Police tweeted at 10:32 p.m. that "Officers are now deploying pepper balls at the aggressive crowd."
People are protesting the death of Freddie Gray, who died following injuries he suffered in police custody.
10:15 p.m.
Fifteen minutes after the start of the city-wide curfew, hundreds of people are still on the streets of Baltimore. Police in riot gear have started to move toward the crowd. Volunteers are still urging the crowd to go home. Police have told media they can stay but residents are being told to leave.
A helicopter is broadcasting a message telling all non-media to go home.
The message said, "You must go home. You cannot remain here. You will be subject to arrest."
Some are throwing bottles at the police. The riot officers are advancing.
People across the country are angry over the police-custody death of Freddie Gray.
10:00 p.m.
Baltimore police spokesman Capt. Eric Kowalczyk said police were using a variety of measures to inform the public about the curfew.
Shortly before the curfew was to go into effect he said that police in cruisers were driving through neighborhoods using their cars' public address systems to notify residents of the 10 p.m. curfew. He said police were also broadcasting the message using a police helicopter. Kowalczyk said the city was also using its Reverse 911 system to notify residents of the curfew.
Maryland's governor said there will be 2,000 National Guard troops and more than 1,000 police officers on the streets to enforce the 10 p.m.-5 a.m. curfew after riots in the wake of Freddie Gray's death. He died after injuries in police custody.
9:30 p.m.
Just before 9 p.m., a crowd of several hundred remained on the street near where a CVS pharmacy was looted.
A line of self-appointed peacekeepers could be seen pushing the crowd back from a line of police that had been blocking the street all day.
A local pastor could be heard on the loud speaker urging residents to go home and respect the curfew. "Let's show the world, because the eyes of the world are on Baltimore right now."
People across the country are angry over the police-custody death of Freddie Gray.
9:00 p.m.
With about an hour left until the curfew Baltimore police spokesman Capt. Eric Kowalczyk has said that officers will use discretion in enforcing the restriction.
Kowalczyk said, "Our officers have discretion, which means if we see you and you explain you just got off of an airplane and you're headed home, they have the ability to exercise discretion and they don't have to arrest you." He added, "This is about preserving the public peace."
Baltimore police said on Twitter that they would begin using bull horns around 9 p.m. to remind residents of the curfew.
The police-custody death of Freddie Gray has angered people across the country.
8:30 p.m.
Baltimore Public Schools CEO Gregory Thornton said in a notice posted on the school system's website that schools will be open on Wednesday. The notice also said that after-school sports and clubs will also take place.
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said schools had no choice but to close Tuesday since many teachers called and said they wouldn't work the day after the riots.
The schools closed a day after the riots in the wake of Freddie Gray's death. He died after injuries in police custody.
8 p.m.
At a New York fundraiser for her presidential campaign, Hillary Rodham Clinton told about 150 donors: "Baltimore is burning."
"It is heartbreaking," Clinton said. "The tragic death of another young African-American man. The injuries to police officers. The burning of peoples' homes and small businesses. We have to restore order and security. But then we have to take a hard look as to what we need to do to reform our system."
Clinton said she planned to address the unrest in Baltimore in more detail on Wednesday during a speech at Columbia University.
People and across the country are angry over the police-custody death of Freddie Gray.
7 p.m.
A mother who was recorded hitting her 16-year-old son after she saw him throwing objects at Baltimore police says when they made eye contact, he knew he was in trouble.
"I'm a no-tolerant mother. Everybody that knows me, know I don't play that," Toya Graham, a single mother of six, told CBS News. "He said, when 'I seen you,' he said, 'ma, my instinct was to run."'
Graham received wide praise from people on social media and even the Baltimore police commissioner, who said more parents should have taken charge of their children after the riots started.
The riots began hours after the funeral for Freddie Gray, who died following injuries he suffered in police custody.
6:20 p.m.
Maryland's governor says there will be 2,000 National Guard troops and more than 1,000 police officers on the streets to enforce a 10 p.m.-5 a.m. curfew.
Gov. Larry Hogan said the combined force "will not tolerate violence or looting." He says maintaining law and order and protecting lives and property is the No. 1 priority.
5:55 p.m.
Baltimore's police commissioner is warning residents of a looming curfew and says people should not be out after 10 p.m. unless they are going to work or have a medical emergency.
Commissioner Anthony Batts also answered critics about why his agency didn't respond faster or ask the National Guard sooner for help. He said he didn't want a show of force because the demonstration started out with teenagers who are old enough to know better, but "they're still kids."
The riot started hours after Freddie Gray's funeral. He died after being injured in police custody.
4:45 p.m.
Librarian Melanie Diggs protected her customers and staff from violent looters the way a good librarian should - quietly.
Diggs, branch manager of the Enoch Pratt Free Library's Pennsylvania Avenue branch, said Tuesday that as hundreds of rioters stormed toward the neighborhood where Freddie Gray was arrested, she had workers calmly lock the doors.
"Nobody really knew," Diggs said. "The customers were in here, like any day."
As the mob set fire to a police car, and looted and burned a CVS pharmacy across the street, Diggs directed her 20 customers and six staffers to the building's lowest level. She had a security guard change into street clothes, fearing his uniform would be a target, and kept watch for about two hours until it seemed safe enough to send people home.
She had them slip out a side door, and then went home herself to her family.
4:15 p.m.
A spokeswoman for former Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley says he canceled an overseas trip to return to Baltimore to help the city after the riots.
O'Malley left office in January after serving two terms as governor, the maximum allowed under state law. Before that, he was mayor of Baltimore. He is considering seeking the Democratic nomination for president in 2016.
"Since last night, he has been reaching out to community leaders, the mayor and members of the clergy to offer his assistance where appropriate and needed," spokeswoman Lis Smith said.
The former governor lives in Baltimore. His wife is a judge in the city.
His arrival comes as the city is reeling from riots after the death of Freddie Gray, who was critically injured while in police custody.
3:40 p.m.
Dozens of Baltimore County police and state troopers are guarding a mall that closed over security concerns.
Rumors spread on the Internet that high school kids were going to converge Tuesday on the Security Square mall in Woodlawn, several miles west of downtown. Police and news media outnumbered a dozen or so curious onlookers.
Police say the riots a day earlier started when high school students were let out of school and converged on a different mall, throwing rocks, bottles and bricks at police.
The students were upset over the way they say police treat blacks and the death of Freddie Gray, who suffered critical injuries in police custody.
3 p.m.
The mayor of Baltimore says schools had no choice but to close since many teachers called and said they wouldn't work the day after the riots.
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake also walked back her comments she made about "thugs" trying to tear down the city.
"I wanted to say something that was on my heart ... We don't have thugs in Baltimore. Sometimes my little anger interpreter gets the best of me," she said, pointing to her head. "We have a lot of kids that are acting out, a lot of people in our community that are acting out."
Religious leaders say 14 churches were open Tuesday for children. The churches are providing meals to the kids, since many of them depend on school for their food.
The schools closed a day after the riots in the wake of Freddie Gray's death. He died after injuries in police custody.
2:30 p.m.
Police say one person was critically injured in a fire during the riots in Baltimore.
Capt. Eric Kowalczyk (koh-wall-check) said at least 20 officers were hurt during the chaos that started as a "high school event" and escalated. He said nearly three dozen juveniles were arrested and more than 200 adults were taken into custody after people set fire to cars and businesses and looted stores. Nearly 150 cars were burned.
As Kowalczyk was speaking, a group of demonstrators gathered on the streets, mostly peacefully. One person was taken into custody and police used pepper spray to keep protesters back when he became unruly.
The riots occurred Monday, hours after Freddie Gray was buried. He died from injuries he suffered in police custody.
1:30 p.m.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson has visited a burned-out drug store in Baltimore as crowds gather in the streets a night after riots.
Jackson said the violence, while inexcusable, reflected the alienation of unemployed people in neighborhoods full of empty homes and vacant lots.
"It was painful because it destroyed a lot of neighborhood businesses and hurt a lot of people, but the violence is driven by that alienation," Jackson said.
Dozens of people have gathered again in the street, dancing and clapping at time. A line of police officers shoulder-to-shoulder stood watch nearby.
The demonstrations have been going on since Gray was arrested in the neighborhood and died after suffering injuries in police custody.
12:55 p.m.
President Barack Obama says there have been too many troubling police interactions with black citizens.
Obama is calling the deaths of several black men by police "a slow rolling crisis." He says it's not new, but there's new awareness from cameras and social media.
The president says there's "no excuse" for violence in Baltimore. Obama says looters are not protesting but stealing. He says they should be treated as criminals.
Obama spoke Tuesday at a White House press conference with the Japanese prime minister as the National Guard was called in to quell violence. Rioting broke out Monday after the funeral for Freddie Gray, a black man who died in police custody under mysterious circumstances.
12:15 p.m.
The Maryland governor is promising that Baltimore will not have a repeat of the riots that happened on Monday.
Gov. Larry Hogan said at a news conference Tuesday that there had been no incidents in the morning, but he does worry about what will happen at night. Hogan declared a state of emergency about three hours after the riots started Monday afternoon.
He has activated the National Guard, which is helping police keep the peace in the city.
The riots came after the death of Freddie Gray. He died after he was injured in police custody.
12 p.m.
Hundreds of volunteers are cleaning up the wreckage left by rioters in the neighborhood where Freddie Gray was arrested.
Part of the area was blocked off by officers to help with debris removal. Area hardware stores donated trash bags and brooms, and city workers brought in trucks to haul away mounds of trash and broken glass.
With schools closed, Blanca Tapahuasco, 43, brought her three sons from another part of the city to help sweep outside a looted CVS pharmacy.
"We're helping the neighborhood build back up," she said. "This is an encouragement to them to know the rest of the city is not just looking on and wondering what to do."
The riots began shortly after Freddie Gray's funeral. Gray died after being injured in police custody.
11:40 a.m.
Police say a mall in suburban Baltimore has closed after rumors spread on social media about plans for trouble there and at other locations.
County police spokesman Cpl. John Wachter says Security Square Mall decided to close Tuesday, but it was not at the direction of police. The mall is near the Social Security Administration's headquarters and just a few miles west of the city.
The riots started Monday at a mall near downtown Baltimore, on the same day as Freddie Gray's funeral. Gray died after suffering injuries while in police custody.
11:15 a.m.
A woman who hit and pushed a boy to remove him from the riots in Baltimore is being hailed by the police commissioner and others online.
Video of the woman, presumably the boy's mother, shows her smacking him on the head as other youths throw bricks, rocks and other objects at police near a mall Monday afternoon.
"I wish I had more parents that took charge of their kids out there," Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said of the video.
The woman has not been identified.
Police asked parents in a series of tweets to get their children inside after groups of youths became violent.
The riots started hours after the funeral for Freddie Gray. He suffered a critical injury while in police custody.
