Despite earlier statements from department leadership, the Baltimore Police Department will not be releasing an audit into their department's response to the Brooklyn Day shooting within 45 days.
In a statement sent to WYPR on Tuesday morning, 45 days out from the Brooklyn shooting, a BPD spokesperson wrote, “The Baltimore Police Department’s Compliance Bureau has completed a draft of its After-Action Review and is actively working to finalize its submission.”
That 45-day timeline was put forth by Interim Police Commissioner Richard Worley to the Baltimore City Council during an oversight meeting on July 15th. “Our compliance Bureau is putting together a comprehensive report after action report,” said Worley, adding that it would be done alongside federal consent decree monitors. That report would then go to the Performance Review Board said Worley and that the whole process would “ conclude hopefully within about 45 days.”
He repeated the 45-day number multiple times.
During a press conference earlier this month, Mayor Brandon Scott cautioned that the internal report may not be available by the timeline set by Worley.
“Sometimes these things, we've seen in the past with other ones, they take two, three, or four months,” said Scott on August 2nd. “I want us to be able to go through and know every single thing so they knew, every action that was taken, so that we can respond appropriately. So I'm not going to rush them to complete that.”
Mayor Scott did promise reporters, “When I see it. You’ll see it.”
In a statement to WYPR, a spokesperson for BPD wrote, “The review will be shared with several internal and external stakeholders for final revision and will be publicized in accordance with BPD and the Mayor’s Office.”
Mayor Scott’s office returned a request for comment on Wednesday morning, after this story was published.
“All of the after action reports are being compiled by the City Administrator’s office in order to present the Mayor with a comprehensive assessment that includes recommendations for interagency coordination. Once that is complete, it will be reviewed by the Mayor and released,” wrote Mayor Scott’s office in a Wednesday morning email statement.
The mayor’s office confirmed that the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE), the Housing Authority of Baltimore, and the Department of Transportation are doing their own after-action reports.
The police department did not confirm a date for when the report would be released to the public.
The Baltimore City Council’s public safety and government operations committee will hold a second hearing into the city’s Brooklyn shooting response is scheduled for September 13th; it is being held with the intention that the after-action report from BPD will be available for review.
Update 08/16/2023: This story has been updated with a statement from the mayor's office.
