My name is Jenny Egan, and I am a founding member of the Baltimore Action Legal Team or BALT. BALT was formed in the wake of the killing of Freddie Gray and the subsequent Baltimore Uprising. BALT believes that centuries of state sponsored violence against Black people and specific police actions led to the events of April 2015. Unfortunately, much of that state sponsored violence is codified in our legal system. This reality requires federal, state, and local government action to effectively remedy past harms and prevent a continued pattern of state violence.

I’d first like to take this opportunity to acknowledge that this month marks the two-year anniversary of the killing of Freddie Gray. Whatever else is said today, we should remember that a 25-year-old young man had to die at the hands of BPD for us to get to this table. And not just Freddie. Tyrone West. Kimani Johnson. Tyree Woodson. An endless list of men, women, and children who have been subjected to violence and death at the hands of the Baltimore Police Department. BALT seeks a fair and equitable agreement on their behalf.

On October 1, 2016, Baltimore Action Legal Team (BALT) will host the first ever Lightning BALT at Coppin State University. In collaboration with Out For Justice, Black Worker Center and Coppin State University’s Urban Studies Program, the daylong workshop provides a space for Baltimore residents, community activists, and legal workers to come together to develop a collective action plan focused on how to improve access to quality jobs and uproot sentencing disparities in Baltimore. The event is free and open to the public. 

Today the Baltimore Action Legal Team (BALT) released a list of comprehensive recommendations for the consent decree between the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division (DOJ) and the Baltimore Police Department (BPD).

BALT maintains that many areas of reform are needed, but we have directed comment and recommendations on the following critical areas: 1) unconstitutional stops, frisks, searches, and arrests; 2) the current and historical role of BPD in the greater system of structural racism; 3) infringement on individuals’ rights of free speech and assembly; 4) gender bias in policing; and 5) implementation of a community-led monitoring system over BPD and the Consent Decree. 

BALT believes that the consent decree must specifically and separately address the circumstances of young people in Baltimore. For that reason, we created a separate document that contains our demands for juveniles in Baltimore.