Police officials in Baltimore say National Guard troops are taking up positions in parts of the eastern U.S. city, which was engulfed by rioting after the funeral of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who died from injuries sustained while in police custody earlier this month.

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake called it “one of the darkest days” Baltimore has ever faced.” She declared a weeklong nighttime curfew, while Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency and activated the National Guard.  

“I understand anger.  What we see isn’t anger, it’s the destruction of a community,” the mayor told reporters late Monday, calling the protesters “thugs.”

At least 15 officers were hurt in Baltimore, including six who remained hospitalized late Monday, police said. Two dozen people were arrested.

State and local authorities pledged to restore order and calm, but quickly found themselves responding to questions about whether their initial responses had been adequate.

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake was asked why she waited hours to ask the governor to declare a state of emergency, while the governor himself hinted she should have come to him earlier.

“We were all in the command center in the second floor of the State House in constant communication, and we were trying to get in touch with the mayor for quite some time,” Gov. Larry Hogan told a Monday evening news conference. “She finally made that call, and we immediately took action.”

Maj. Gen. Linda Singh, adjutant general of the Maryland National Guard, said up to 5,000 troops would be available for Baltimore’s streets.

“We are going to be out in massive force, and that just means basically that we are going to be patrolling the streets and out to ensure that we are protecting property,” Singh said at a news conference Monday night.

The protests began as hundreds of high school students marched towards a local mall after classes had dismissed for the day, then spread and out across several neighborhoods, overwhelming the police department’s ability to prevent the violence. 

Television footage showed a pharmacy in flames shortly after it was looted by rioters.  Demonstrators were also caught throwing rocks, bricks, glass bottles and other objects at riot police. 

As the night wore on, more fires erupted throughout the city, including a church-run senior center that was still under construction.

The sister of Freddie Gray condemned the rioting. “I think the violence is wrong… I don’t like it at all,” Fredericka Gray said late Monday.

The attorney for Gray’s family, Billy Murphy, said the family had hoped to organize a peace march later in the week.

Thousands of mourners had gathered Monday at a Baltimore church to pay their respects to Freddie Gray, whose death has become the latest incident sparking questions and protests about interactions between minorities and police in the United States.

Gray suffered severe spinal cord injuries following his arrest on April 12. Officials said he was not restrained properly while being transported in a police van.  Police Commissioner Betts said officers were slow to recognize that Gray, who apparently had asthma, needed medical attention. 

Six officers who had contact with Gray have been placed on paid administrative leave.

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, who was sworn in Monday just hours before the violence erupted, met with President Barack Obama at the White House to discuss the federal government’s response to the unrest.  Lynch later issued a statement condemning what she called “the senseless acts of violence by some individuals in Baltimore.” She promised to deploy the full resources of the Justice Department in “protecting those under threat, investigating wrongdoing, and securing an end to violence.”

The Justice Department and the FBI have a civil rights investigation into Gray’s death.  The Baltimore Police Department said more information on the case is expected this Friday, May 1.

Some material for this report came from the Associated Press.
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