The mayhem continued throughout the evening Monday and spilled over into early Tuesday morning. Police said at around 1am Tuesday that firefighters were being assaulted and that their efforts to put out fires were "disrupted by people with no regard for life." Police said that officers were being deployed to protect the firefighters.At least 27 people have been arrested. Maryland State Police announced plans to deploy 500 officers to Baltimore and said they will request up to 5,000 more from neighboring states."We are deploying resources throughout the city to ensure residents are safe," Baltimore police tweeted around 9:30pm. "Despite our efforts, criminals continue to assault officers."The National Guard on the scene right now in - Philip Crowther (@PhilipinDC)April 28, 2015
Fifteen officers were injured and two hospitalized after a crowd of hundreds of young protesters at a mall turned on riot cops deployed to control the demonstrations and prevent looting."This is a group of lawless individuals with no regard for people," Kowalczyk said. "We don't know who is out there. We do [know] they are criminals and have attacked officers without provocation."Batts blamed the violence on high school students. "This was just youth coming out of the high school and they thought it was cute to throw cinder blocks at the police," he said, urging parents to "take control of your kids."Several "violent and aggressive" protesters hurled bricks and rocks at officers, while others looted nearby shops and set a police car on fire at North and Pennsylvania Avenues, police said in a series of tweets.We are deploying officers with the fire department to ensure fire fighting operations are not disrupted by people w/ no regard for life.
- Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice)April 28, 2015
The group is damaging additional police cars in the area. The group is aggressive and violent. We are continuing to deploy resources.
- Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice)April 27, 2015
An officer came under fire in northwest Baltimore at about 10pm near Virginia Avenue and Reisterstown Road, according to the Baltimore Sun, but nobody was injured and the suspected shooter fled.Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced that a citywide curfew will take effect tomorrow from 10pm to 5am, with juveniles ordered off the streets before 9pm. Baltimore city schools have also been ordered closed Tuesday.The mayor said police will use images and video from social media to prosecute rioters. "We will be holding people accountable," she said. "I'm at a loss for words. It is idiotic to think that by destroying your city, you're going to make life better for anybody."The White House issued a statement saying new Attorney General Loretta Lynch will "continue to monitor the events in Baltimore," and that the Justice Department is "ready to provide any assistance that might be helpful there."Protesters shared images on social media of large groups of police assembled on the streets.Despite having rocks, bricks, and other items thrown at us - officers are using fire extinguishers to put out small fires in the area.
- Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice)April 27, 2015
A large building - reportedly a senior center that was empty and under construction - caught fire and became engulfed in flames several miles east of where the looting was taking place. A Baltimore Fire Department spokesman initially said the fire was not related to the unrest, but the Associated Press quoted officials saying it was in fact related to the riots.So. Many. Officers. North/Fulton. - deray mckesson (@deray)April 28, 2015
Bill Murphy, an attorney for the Gray family, told the Washington Post that the family is "devastated" by the violence."If this becomes widespread, the mood in Baltimore will shift from what went wrong with the police and Freddie, to how the police are doing a great job at securing this chaos," Gray said. "This won't solve the police problem. This is dangerous to the movement."Some footage appeared to show an almost carnival atmosphere early in the day, with Michael Jackson music blaring and an individual dancing in the street with a guitar.Massive building fire - Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton)April 28, 2015
The fracas began several hours after the funeral service for Gray, a 25-year-old Baltimore man who died last week after his spine was severed and voice box was crushed while in police custody.Earlier Monday morning, as thousands thronged to attend Gray's funeral, police announced that a "credible threat" to incite violence has been made by rival gangs against police.Members from a number of Baltimore gangs including the Crips, Bloods, and Black Guerilla Family "have entered into a partnership to 'take-out' law enforcement officers," according to a police press release.
Officer is down. Badly injured. - Erica L. Green (@EricaLG)April 27, 2015
Police van on fire as well as car on W North - Victoria Bekiempis (@vicbekiempis)April 27, 2015
The largely peaceful protests began in the wake of Gray's death on April 19, a week after the 25-year-old sustained a crushed voice box and severed spine in police custody. Over the weekend, demonstrations have given way to rounds of violence and property damage.At least 34 people, including four juveniles, were arrested citywide Saturday and Sunday, police said, adding that six officers were injured in scuffles.Baltimore officials sent in 1,200 riot police to control hundreds of protesters Saturday as they marched through the streets chanting and holding banners to call for an end to police brutality and for formal charges to be brought against the six officers involved in Gray's arrest.A small group of demonstrators later began to throw objects, including water bottles and lit barrels, toward police officers. Some climbed on police cars and smashed windshields and windows of nearby shops.Despite the frenzy, some protesters continued to call for calm as demonstrations continued Saturday night. Batts praised the actions of those who stood between an angry crowd and a line of riot police backed by mounted officers. Some reportedly pleaded with other demonstrators not to "lose the message."Yesterday, the police assaulted a photographer. Now, this is violence. Baltimore. - deray mckesson (@deray)April 26, 2015