The Latest: Defence rests in Baltimore officer’s trial

BALTIMORE – The Latest on the trial of a police officer charged with murder in the death of a black prisoner whose neck was broken in a transport van (all times local):

11:30 a.m.

The defence has rested in the trial of a Baltimore police officer charged with murder in the death of a black prisoner whose neck was broken in a transport van.

Officer Caesar Goodson, the van’s driver, declined to testify Friday in his own defence. He’s charged with second-degree “depraved heart” murder in the death of Freddie Gray last year. He’s also charged with manslaughter, assault, misconduct in office and reckless endangerment charges.

Court has adjourned for the day, and Judge Barry Williams has scheduled closing arguments for Monday.

Before the defence rested, attorneys called Officer Edward Nero to the stand. He was one of the six officers who responded the day Gray was arrested. He testified that Gray was not co-operative during his arrest on April 12, 2015.

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3:30 a.m.

Baltimore Judge Barry Williams will be sorting through plenty of contradictory and confusing testimony when he decides the case of a police officer charged with murdering a prisoner whose neck was broken in a police transport van.

The trial against Officer Caesar Goodson heads into its seventh day Friday. This week, the reliability of witnesses has been under constant fire.

From the arrested man who rode in the van with 25-year-old Freddie Gray to the lead detective’s testimony about what the medical examiner initially thought caused Gray’s death, attorneys have battled to challenge what witnesses say on the stand.

The city’s chief deputy said Thursday he tried to have the lead detective removed from the case last year, because he believed she was “sabotaging the investigation.”