Prosecutor: Baltimore police officer offered pot on the clock
BALTIMORE — Two Baltimore cops had been indicted this week in separate instances, together with an 11-year division veteran accused of promoting medication on the clock — allegations that come because the company seeks to rebuild its fame after the Gun Hint Activity Power corruption scandal ruptured public belief.
Officer Cejus Watson was presupposed to be working at police headquarters in downtown Baltimore on Sept. 29, however he left throughout his shift and drove to a Baltimore County tattoo parlor the place he offered marijuana, in response to a grand jury indictment.
Watson had been beforehand charged with marijuana distribution in Baltimore County, a separate authorized jurisdiction, and was suspended with out pay because of this; that case, which pertains to the identical alleged drug deal, is ongoing with trial scheduled for June.
Baltimore State’s Lawyer Ivan Bates, who took workplace as the town’s high prosecutor in January, introduced the indictments at a information convention Thursday morning, saying they reveal his dedication to holding regulation enforcement officers accountable for misconduct.
The second officer, Alexis Acosta, faces manslaughter and different prices after he struck and killed a scooter rider whereas responding to a September 911 name.
Bates stated the indictments name into query the officers’ “integrity and skill to guard the residents of Baltimore Metropolis.” He known as Watson’s alleged actions “completely mind-boggling.”
“After I hear there’s proof that an officer was allegedly promoting medication on the job, I can’t assist however consider the infamous Gun Hint Activity Power — the disgrace that was introduced on our police division and our metropolis as an entire,” he stated.
That corruption scandal resulted in additional than a dozen officers being convicted of prison prices. It stemmed from the invention that members of an elite plainclothes squad, created to get unlawful weapons off the streets, had robbed drug sellers, planted narcotics and firearms on harmless folks, and assaulted random civilians.
The division additionally stays below a federal consent decree that mandates a collection of court-ordered reforms to root out unconstitutional policing practices.
Whereas troubling, Bates stated, the costs towards Watson doubtless aren’t consultant of extra widespread corruption contained in the division.
“The consent decree, I do imagine is working,” he stated.
Watson made $86,000 in 2021, in response to public wage information. An legal professional representing him didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark Thursday.
Acosta was responding to a 911 name a couple of reported stabbing when he struck Terry Harrell, 58, who was using an electrical scooter. Video footage of the crash confirmed Acosta driving by a crimson gentle together with his lights and sirens on. Along with manslaughter, he’s accused of reckless and negligent driving.
On-line court docket information didn’t point out Thursday whether or not Acosta has an legal professional representing him.
A spokesperson for the Baltimore Police Division stated Acosta stays on administrative obligation.
Bates has made different bulletins of indictments of Baltimore cops. Nevertheless, he additionally declined to prosecute an officer who fatally shot a fleeing teenage driver final 12 months. That call, which has drawn criticism from activists, was at odds with an investigative report from state prosecutors who additionally reviewed the case.