Baltimore Action Legal Team Files Three Suits Against Baltimore City To Assert Transparency

Baltimore Action Legal Team (BALT) Files Lawsuits To Make Internal Investigative Reports Into Baltimore Police Officers Public Records.

[BALTIMORE, MARYLAND 03/02/2020] — Today, local community organizations Baltimore Action Legal Team (BALT) and Open Justice Baltimore (OJB), filed three lawsuits against the Baltimore Police Department, the Office of the State’s Attorney, and the Civilian Review Board to increase transparency of the Baltimore Police Department (BPD). Each suit seeks to promote accountability around local police investigations and improve trust and relationships with law enforcement.   

The organizations have requested the State’s Attorney’s Office release the confirmed possession of criminal investigation records of BPD officers measured in thousands of hours to reproduce, including an estimated 438 hours for just 2019 files. A jury has been requested to determine the necessity of releasing these documents to the public.

Lawsuits are also requesting investigations conducted by the Baltimore Police Department be made public; these investigations include alleged criminal activity, uses of force, and serious misconduct of officers. 

Additionally, filings seek release of misconduct investigations by the Civilian Review Board, an independent municipal body composed of citizen representatives, as the investigations are public documents. However, access to these records has been restricted by the CRB as it operates under BPD’s shared law department. 

It is difficult to estimate the quantity of records withheld. Aggregate numbers released by BPD in 2019 showed 1,389 citizen complaints were made against the department -- and the department internally reported an additional 1,031 ‘use of force’ incidents. Publication of these records can assist in fostering trust of City institutions, particularly as underreporting ‘use of force’ remains a national concern. BALT has attempted to obtain these records for several months, but has been unlawfully denied or in some cases left without any response.

Release of these documents in cities like Chicago have helped identify behavioral patterns of officers to interrupt trajectories of violence. Making this data public has allowed insight into social patterns and behaviors influencing groups such as the ‘Gun Trace Task Force.’

For more information contact Matt Zernhelt, Legal Director, BALT, at mzernhelt@baltimoreactionlegal.org.