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In the Media: Boy Shot by Baltimore Police Will Not Face Charges; Catonsville Nine Activist Dies

Daniel Berrigan, one of the Catonsville Nine, in 2012.
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Daniel Berrigan, one of the Catonsville Nine, in 2012.

A digest of Baltimore news from local sources.

From the Baltimore Sun: Boy shot by Baltimore officer will ‘absolutely not’ face charges, police commissioner says

"The eighth-grader shot by a Baltimore police officer who mistook a BB gun the boy had for a real firearm will not be charged with a crime, Police Commissioner Kevin Davis said Saturday.

"Dedric Colvin's mother, Volanda Young, also will not be charged with a crime, Davis said. He spoke during a panel discussion hosted by the National Association of Black Journalists at Morgan State University.

"Dedric was shot in the shoulder and leg on April 27 by a plainclothes officer on the one-year anniversary of riots that followed the death of Freddie Gray from spinal injuries suffered in police custody. After Dedric was shot, Young said she was handcuffed and placed in a cell before being released. Davis has said that Young was belligerent and that officers made 'a judgment call.'

"Police said Dedric is 13 years old; the family has said he is 14 years old. He attends City Springs Middle School.

"Davis has defended the officer's actions, but lamented the boy was injured. Police have said Dedric was carrying a 'replica' gun and ran from police, and Davis has said officers can't wait to determine if a gun is real before taking action.

"Panelist and activist Korey Johnson criticized Davis and the Police Department, saying it seemed they were seeking empathy when a black teenager was the one who was hurt.

"Activist DeRay Mckesson, who ran and lost in the Democratic primary for mayor on Tuesday, said that the actions police took during a bomb scare Thursday at Fox 45 studios seemed far 'more measured' than the actions taken to disarm Dedric. Alex Michael Brizzi, a 25-year-old white man, has been charged in the bomb scare. He was shot by police during the incident.

"Davis said those two situations were 'apples and oranges.' The commissioner also said that if his sons had been in Dedric's situation, the outcome might have been different.

"'They're two 13-year-old white kids,' Davis said. 'If they had a gun in their hand, would it be perceived differently? Yeah, I'd be the first one to admit that.'

"Dedric's family is being represented by attorney William H. "Billy" Murphy, who declined to comment Saturday.

"Tessa Hill-Aston, president of the Baltimore chapter of the NAACP, said she sees Davis' efforts to improve police conduct and community relations. But, she said, some officers do not follow orders, and that is 'beyond the commissioner's control.'"

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From the Baltimore Sun: Jesuit priest among Catonsville Nine remembered fro inspiring anti-war activism 

"They mixed soap powder and gasoline — what they called homemade napalm — planning to leave no casualties other than the draft cards they burned in protest of the Vietnam War.

"En route to the May 1968 raid on the Catonsville draft board, the Rev. Daniel Berrigan calmed his tense, fellow pacifists.

"'It's a beautiful day and we're going to a picnic,' his student, Brendan Walsh, of Baltimore, remembered him saying.

"Then the activist priest, Berrigan, and eight others entered the Catonsville offices, grabbing hundreds of drafts cards and burning them in the parking lot, in one of the more prominent protests of the Vietnam War. All of them were arrested.

"Berrigan died Saturday, age 94, in a Jesuit residence at Fordham University in New York. The notorious demonstration of the Catonsville Nine, and their ensuing trial, established him as a leading figure among advocates for peace and social justice."

Full Article

From the AFRO American: Urban Agriculture in Full Bloom in Blatimore at Douglass HS’s Community Garden

"United States Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack visited Baltimore’s Frederick Douglass High School in Baltimore to announce a new online toolkit aimed at aiding urban farmers in growing and marketing their produce.

"The toolkit is available at usda.gov/knowyourfarmer. It consists of links to technical and financial assistance, including loans and grants, as well as local food directories. He was also there to view the students’ new community garden and to plant its final tree.

“'By expanding access to nutritious foods and increasing awareness about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, urban farms are making a real difference in the lives of many, while promising a brighter, healthier future for the next generation,' the Department of Agriculture said in a statement. 'Urban agriculture is also bringing new, younger producers to the marketplace. Diverse communities across the country are seeing results with increased access to healthy, local foods, reduced crime, and the development of new opportunities in employment and education.'

"Joining the Secretary of Agriculture was the chairman of President Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper task force, Broderick Johnson, and celebrity chef Kwame Onwuachi, owner of The Shaw Bijou in Washington, D.C. and a 'Top Chef' contestant. The attendees discussed the importance of not only the community garden, which the students had started, but urban agriculture and the opportunities it provides to urban communities and their citizens.

"In 2014 President Obama launched the My Brother’s Keeper initiative to address persistent opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color and ensure that all young people can reach their full potential. Johnson, a Baltimore native, heads up the initiative and serves in the President’s cabinet."

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