BALTIMORE (AP) — A federal appeals court has ordered a new trial for a woman who said she was beaten and arrested by Baltimore Police officers for filming an arrest of a juvenile with her cellphone.
A three judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion Thursday siding in favor of Makia Smith, who was arrested in Baltimore in 2012 and later sued the department.
The jury in Smith’s civil trial sided with the officers.
But the appeals court ordered a new trial Thursday because prosecutors brought up her previous arrests during cross examination despite a ruling from the judge that the information must be barred from proceedings.
The appeals court in its opinion said mentioning the arrests created an “enormous” risk of prejudice.
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