Demonstrators in Baltimore continued to hold peaceful protests on Tuesday following a night of chaos and destruction in a call for justice for Freddie Gray, the African American man who died on April 19 after suffering a severe spinal cord injury while in police custody.

Gray, 25, died of an unexplained spinal injury exactly seven days after he was apprehended by Baltimore police. According to officials, Gray made eye contact with an officer and then fled the scene on the morning of Sunday, April 12. He was then chased by the officers, some of whom were patrolling the neighborhood on bike. Once they caught up to him, he was taken into custody for carrying a switchblade knife.

However, in cellphone footage captured by witnesses, Gray's legs appear to be limp as he was being dragged into a police van. Another witness at the scene said that Gray was screaming in pain, and that his legs folded like "origami."

"The officer had their knee in his neck. And he was just screaming -- screaming for life," said Kevin Moore, according to Vox. "He couldn't breathe. He needed an asthma pump, which he let them know. ... They ignored it."

Once police arrived at their destination, they discovered that Gray was unresponsive. He was then transported to the University of Maryland Medical Center's Shock Trauma Center, where he died one week later.

Baltimore Police Capt. Eric Kowalczyk described the midday protests on Tuesday as peaceful. However, they came just one day after protests led to violent riots and the arrest of 235 people, including 34 juveniles, on Monday.

According to CNN, some people began looting and destroying property. As a result, there were 144 vehicle fires and 19 structure fires while a number of businesses were destroyed.

"What happened ... destroyed so much of the progress that the people who actually live here have been working for," said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, adding that Monday was "a very dark day for our city."

"What happened last night made sure that more people are struggling and that more people have needs, and those needs are going to go unmet because of what was destroyed."

In addition, at least 20 officers were wounded, said Kowalczyk.

President Obama also addressed the chaos in Baltimore, calling the riots "senseless violence and destruction."

"They're not protesting, they're not making a statement. They're stealing," Obama said at news conference Tuesday afternoon, according to ABC News. "They're destroying and undermining businesses and opportunities in their own communities."

"They need to be treated as criminals," said the president.