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 Officer William Porter, 26, faces manslaughter and other charges
in Baltimore City Circuit Court over the death of Freddie Gray from
a spinal injury suffered in the back of a police van.
His death triggered rioting in the city, which has a majority of
blacks, and intensified a U.S. debate on police tactics, especially
the treatment of minorities.
Gray, 25, was arrested after he fled from officers and was put into
a transport van while shackled and handcuffed. He was not secured by
a seat belt and died a week later.
Gray told Porter at a van stop that he needed medical aid and Porter
lifted him onto a van bench. But Porter did not get help or strap
him into a seat belt, despite department guidelines to do so,
according to testimony.
 Defense witness Timothy Longo, the police chief in Charlottesville,
Virginia, and an expert on law enforcement procedures, said on
Thursday that officers had the discretion to ignore departmental
orders while on the street.
What Porter did was "objectively reasonable," he said.
Porter is the first of six officers, three of them black, to face
trial. Charges against the other officers range from second-degree
murder to misconduct.
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The defense has argued that Porter, who is black, did not believe
Gray was seriously injured until the van's final stop. His lawyers
have suggested that other officers were responsible for seeking
help.
Prosecutors contend that Porter ignored Gray's pleas for medical aid
and his failure to secure him with a seat belt violated police
policy.
Porter faces charges of involuntary manslaughter, second-degree
assault, reckless endangerment and misconduct in office. He faces
more than 25 years in prison if convicted on all counts.
(Writing by Ian Simpson; Editing by Peter Cooney and Ken Wills)
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