Cop William Porter Was Expected To Testify In Trials Of Other Officers

After a jury was unable to reach a verdict for two days, the judge in the case of Baltimore officer Porter declared a mistrial on Wednesday. Porter is the first of six officers charged in the death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray to be tried and the declaration is a huge blow to prosecutors, who were hoping to use Porter as a witness in the other trials if he'd been found guilty. Despite fears of potentially angry protests -- such as the ones that erupted two weeks after Gray's death -- the streets of Baltimore were relatively calm on Wednesday night as activists urged peace. Porter, 26, remains charged with involuntary manslaughter, second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and misconduct in office as the judge decides how to proceed.

Because Congress Won't, Obama To Act On Guns

President Obama met on Wednesday with former NY city mayor Michael Bloomberg to discuss "ways to keep guns out of the hands of those who should not have access to them and what more could be done at the state and local level to help address gun violence in America." Bloomberg helped found the lobbying group Everytown for Gun Safety and has been pushing to amend gun laws across the nation. The White House has not said what executive orders it might make, but among the priorities are expanding background checks and closing the so-called "gun show loophole." Republicans in Congress have vowed to block any new gun legislation.

Now It's The Defense Sec. Who Used Private Email

As the Hillary Clinton email flap starts to fade, word emerged Thursday (Dec. 17) that U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter used a personal email account for some unspecified work-related business at the Pentagon earlier this year. While he has since reportedly stopped, the Pentagon said Carter -- who took the job in February -- kept using his own email account against Defense Department rules for at least two months after the revelations about Clinton's use of a personal account while secretary of state. A spokesperson said Carter mainly used his personal account to correspond with friends and family.

Really? Really?: Popp Ferry Elementary in Biloxi, Miss., has apologized to student Makiyah-Jae Jolly after it made the 8-year-old take off a shirt that said "Black Girls Rock." Makiyah's mom bought the shirt, from a group the promotes empowerment of black women, because she worried when Makiyah expressed discomfort in her own skin. When mom Sharika called the principal to find out why he'd made her daughter change, he admitted that "it's not the policy," but then asserted that it was his prerogative to make the call; two days later the school called to formally apologize and now a family friend plans to get Makiyah another BGR shirt.

If You Really Want To Read It: Here's the full text of the hateful, kind of stupid and gross email that shut down the L.A. Unified School District on Tuesday and which turned out to be a hoax.

And, Finally...: Video of a 17-year-old inexplicably punching the Spanish Prime Minister in the face just days before the upcoming general election. It might have something to do with how much Spain's youth hate PM Mariano Rajoy for austerity measures that have resulted in huge youth unemployment.