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Weekend Of Baltimore Violence Leaves Nine Dead

Weekend Of Baltimore Violence Leaves Nine Dead

Police say nine people died and a further 19 were injured in shootings in Baltimore over the Memorial Day weekend.

A nine-year-old boy was among those hurt when a bullet struck his leg and another man was hit in the Mosher district of the city.

A further 26 were shot in a weekend that broke records for the level of violence.

Councillor Mary Pat Clarke said the upsurge could be related to the recent unrest following the death in custody of Freddie Gray.

She said: "It was a very tense, earthquake kind of time and I think we're going through the aftershock."

One of the incidents was a triple shooting in which one man died and another two were left needing hospital treatment.

The Baltimore Sun has reported a total of 35 people have been killed so far in May making it the deadliest month in Baltimore since December 1999.

One of the deaths occurred on the 800 block of West Fayette Street when a man was shot dead in a car.

So far none of the victims have been identified and no arrests have been made.

Police said the recent unrest had provided them with an opportunity to form new relationships.

Six police officers charged over the death of Mr Gray were last week indicted by a grand jury .

Mr Gray, 25, was arrested by Baltimore police on 12 April and later died from injuries allegedly suffered while in police custody.

His death led to weeks of largely peaceful protests, but trouble flared after his funeral when rioters threw rocks at police and set fire to buildings and cars.

The case was one of a number of deaths of unarmed black men involving the police, which has led to a wave of unrest across other cities in the US.