Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan Bates released a new “Do Not Call” list on Monday. It contains the names of 60 police officers who the prosecutor’s office deemed too untrustworthy to testify on behalf of the state in court.
The list is divided into two groups: officers who are currently on the force, of which there are 11, and 49 officers who have left the force within the last five years. It also includes officers accused of misconduct as members of the infamous Gun Trace Task Force.
“The few in uniform who gamble with the credibility of the department and the integrity of my prosecutors' cases must be identified for the sake of accountability. This is critically important because of the history of Baltimore in the not too distant stain of corruption within our police department,” said State’s Attorney Ivan Bates during a press conference on Monday.
This list is different from the one held under his predecessor Marilyn Mosby. That list had 91 officers including dozens who were convicted of crimes and no longer employed by the Baltimore Police Department. Bates took down that list in April, stating that he wanted to release an updated list using his office’s own protocols.
Bates’ outlined some of the criteria his office used to create the list.
- Officers who have formal charges filed through BPD’s Internal Affairs related to behaviors such as a lack of truthfulness, theft or false statements
- Officers who are facing criminal charges or who are convicted of crimes related to credibility, like perjury.
The SAO also has the discretion to determine to add an officer to a list outside of those circumstances. He gave one hypothetical example of a situation where his office hears about an officer with a pattern of violating constitutional rights during arrests. His office would ideally recommend that the hypothetical officer undergo extra training but if after that training, the alleged pattern of behavior persists, that officer could be placed on the list.
“We must be the guardians ever vigilant to ensure a fair and just system for all,” said Bates.
“I want to thank State’s Attorney Bates and his team for producing a list of officers that reflects our current police department,” said Acting Police Commissioner Richard J. Worley in an emailed statement to WYPR.
“We are committed to getting officers with integrity issues off the streets of Baltimore and putting the best officers forward in rebuilding trust with the communities we serve. I’ve said this before, ‘one bad cop is too many,’ and we will continue to work alongside the State’s Attorney Office and others in putting the best cases forward in creating a safer Baltimore for all.”
Acting Commissioner Richard Worley has his confirmation hearing before the Baltimore City Council on Thursday.
The “Do Not Call” list of 60 officers can be found here. The Mosby list included reasoning as to why an officer had been included but the new Bates list does not.
