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Expressing that it was important to identify those who gamble with the credibility of law enforcement and the integrity of criminal cases, Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates released a list of current and former police officers his office would not call to testify under any circumstances.
Bates took down the “Do Not Call” list from the previous administration to conduct a review of the names. He first released an updated list on on Sept. 18 but, unlike in the past, the document did not include explanations about why officers were on it.
The Baltimore Banner recently obtained a version of the list with that information through a Maryland Public Information Act request.
Here’s what it shows:
Read more coverage about the Baltimore State's Attorney's Office
Why are current and former police officers on the list?
The following table includes descriptions about why 64 current and former officers were placed on the “Do Not Call” list. The Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office provided a spreadsheet on Oct. 27 that included the information.
The records were current as of Oct. 10.
Who is not named on the list?
If officers were separated from a law enforcement agency five or more years ago, their names will not appear on the public list. But assistant state’s attorneys will still not call them to testify in court proceedings.
The exception is if they were members of the Baltimore Police Department’s Gun Trace Task Force, a corrupt plainclothes unit that robbed people, planted evidence and fabricated overtime, or connected to it.
How do members of law enforcement end up on the list?
Bates outlined to reporters how his office will determine whether to put officers on the list. That can happen for several reasons:
- A sustained finding in an internal affairs case that involves behavior related to truthfulness.
- A pending charge or conviction that call into question the ability to truthfully testify.
- The decision of the state’s attorney based on evidence of behavior that reflects on the tendency of an officer to tell the truth.
dylan.segelbaum@thebaltimorebanner.com
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Dylan Segelbaum is the courts reporter at The Baltimore Banner.
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