BALTIMORE (WHDH) — State officials in Maryland are investigating what they are calling “questionable” police conduct, leading prosecutors to drop more than 50 criminal cases involving the officers involved — but the police department has a different view of the account.
Baltimore Police have released the latest body camera video that has led prosecutors to drop more than 50 criminal cases involving a group of officers.
Those officers are being accused of planting evidence.
Marilyn Mosby, the state’s attorney, says “It undermines the public trust, and it can have an impact on every single case we prosecute here in Baltimore.”
The video starts with officers chasing a drug suspect in June. Police say he dropped the drugs and later revealed where during a jailhouse phone call.
The controversy begins the next day when police go to look for the drugs.
The video shows one officer’s body camera rolling continuously when a fellow officer picks up a packet. That officer realizes his camera is off, so he puts the drugs back down, turns the camera on, and picks them up again.
“It’s not a re-enactment,” said commissioner Kevin Davis. “It’s not being re-staged. We could probably sit here and wordsmith all afternoon long. But this one’s certainly not planting evidence.”
The officer reported the case himself after two other questionable body came incidents.
“The decision to drop this particular case and to drop other cases was a bad call,” Davis said.
“We are not playing football here,” said Michael Schatzow, the Chief Deputy State’s Attorney. “This is not a question of trying to get away with something and hope the referee doesn’t see it. We have ethical obligations to call penalties on our own teammates.”
One officer in the video has been suspended, and two others were placed on administrative duty pending the investigation.
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