Could Freddie Gray have severed his own spine in a Baltimore police van? It's highly unlikely

Is it possible that Freddie Gray could have severed his own spine and crushed his own voicebox?

From a medical standpoint, it is unlikely that the 25-year-old Baltimore man injured himself in the back of that van. The severity of his injuries seem too grave for him to have done that to himself simply by thrashing around or banging his head on something.

It is more likely that there was some type of direct blow to either the front or back of his neck, or somewhere along the spinal cord along his back.

How does a spinal cord injury happen? A spinal cord injury is "damage to the spinal cord that results in a loss of function such as mobility or feeling." This type of injury is most often caused by a traumatic blow of the kind that would be sustained in a car accident, severe fall or an act of violence.

There must be a sudden, traumatic blow to the spine that fractures, dislocates, crushes or compresses one or more of the vertebrae, or when a gun shot or knife penetrates the spinal cord. After a spinal cord injury, bleeding, inflammation and swelling occurs, and fluid builds up in and around the spinal cord.

this can lead to permanent paralysis, or in Gray’s case, death. Baltimore police officers have already been suspended for failing to get Gray prompt medical care.

The higher in the back or neck the spinal cord injury occurs, the more dysfunction a person will have as a result. So with a spinal cord injury that occurs from a blow to the neck, a person usually loses function in the arms and legs.

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