National Guard troops leaving Baltimore

Maryland’s governor on Sunday said he has begun the withdrawal of National Guard troops deployed to Baltimore after last week’s riots.

{mosads}“We’ve already started with a drawdown of the Guard,” Gov. Larry Hogan (R) told reporters.

“It’s not going to happen instantaneously,” he added, noting that 4,000 personnel were deployed.

“We’re going to get back to normal as quickly as we can.”

Hogan’s comments came after Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced that a nightly curfew had been lifted.

“I think lifting the curfew is a good idea,” Hogan said.

He said more than 200 businesses, many of them minority-owned, were damaged in Monday evening’s riots.

He additionally estimated the violent demonstrations had cost Baltimore hundreds of millions in property damage and lost revenue.

Hogan expressed relief on Sunday that such disorder had largely dissipated.

“This is the first moment of peace I’ve had in a week,” he said.

The tensions in the city boiled over Monday evening following a funeral for Freddie Gray, 25, who died on April 19 after suffering a severe spinal injury while in police custody.

Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby on Friday charged six police officers for criminal offenses related to Gray’s death. The medical examiner ruled that the incident was a homicide.

— Mark Hensch contributed to this report, which was updated at 1:33 p.m.