P. Kenneth Burns

I cover Metro Baltimore for 88-1, WYPR.  (Metro Baltimore is the city, Anne Arundel and Baltimore counties) Click the menu to follow me on twitter, Instagram and facebook.

[kennethburns]

So long Tumblr!

For those who follow this blog, this will be my last post on this blog.  I am moving my notebook to Wordpress; a platform that I am used to and can do much more multimedia stuff with.

You will not miss a beat there; most of the posts on Tumblr have been imported to wordpress.

I invite you to continue following me at pkbnews.wordpress.com.

[kennethburns]

Who is running the police department?

The city’s police union tweeted Monday the “unforseen (sic) circumstance” that postponed their scheduled news conference.

“Today's press conference delayed due to President Ryan ORDERED to report to @CommishKDavis office this morning.”

Ryan was expected to respond to comments made by Mayor Catherine Pugh and Police Commissioner Kevin Davis.

During a news conference Friday, Pugh and Davis responded to staffing concerns and talked about the union contract.  During that time, Stephen Janis with the Real News Network asked a question after making a noticeable observation;  “It kind of looks like the FOP is running the department; is that true?”

“No, I’m running the department, Stephen,” Davis responded.

The mayor followed by saying “no” 12 times as Janis pointed out how the commissioner acknowledged a limitation on his power in the union contract that expired last June; officer shift schedules.

In January 2015, officers began working a “4-10” schedule; 10-hour shifts four days a week.  That was negotiated between the city and the union.  Before that, it was a five day, eight-hour shift work schedule that most civilians have on their job.

Davis said he never heard of a schedule being negotiated into a police union contract.

That episode does bring up a reminder of how much power FOP Lodge No. 3 has mustered in the past.

They flexed their political muscle to get Anthony Batts fired as police commissioner. And they took some credit for Stephanie Rawlings-Blake deciding not to seek another term as mayor. (As discussed Sept. 16, 2015 on WYPR)

Was Ryan was “ordered” to the commissioner’s office?  The FOP said he was.  And in a way, that proves Davis is running the Baltimore Police Department.  But whether Ryan was actually ordered, we officially don’t know.  I’m trying to get a confirmation on that one.

[kennethburns]

About that letter to Trump

Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh divulged Wednesday more details on her interaction with President-elect Donald Trump at the Army-Navy football game over the weekend.

Well, she did so after giving all of the reporters and news photographers a Baltimore pin.

According to the mayor, still excited about becoming Charm City’s 50th mayor, she was the only elected official to greet Trump as he was getting out of his vehicle.

(Picture from @MayorPugh50)

 “I said ‘I am the mayor of Baltimore’ and he said ‘I know,’ Pugh said.

Pugh continues; “I’m so glad to see you in our city at such a great time as the Army-Navy Game.  But I want you to know that I heard what you said about infrastructure and why we should be your model city down the street.’”

After explaining the cities infrastructure need, Trump said “that’s good; let’s take a picture.”

“So we took a picture and I said I really need you to pay close attention to the fact that we can be your partner,” she said.

And with that, Pugh gave him the letter; which outlined items she is looking to get money for like the I-95 exit for Port Covington and a new Howard Street Tunnel, help to pay for a water infrastructure upgrade and a broadband network.

Pugh has acted counter from the rhetoric against the president-elect.  She was nice, welcoming.  Some would say she is governing and acting as if the election had ended.

For her part, Pugh reminded us that it was Republican Governor Bob Ehrlich who appointed her to the House of Delegates in 2005; finishing the term of Tony Fulton who had died from Cancer.  The Democratic Central Committee at the time sent him two names after there was a tie.

She said two of her friends in the legislature – now County Executives - were Republican; Barry Glassman of Harford County and Allan Kittleman of Howard County.  She said Glassman was the first person to befriend her when she went to Annapolis.

Pugh said she was not able to pass legislation in Annapolis being a Democrat; she was able to pass bills by working across the aisle.

Based on her time with the President-elect, she’ll continue more of the same.

The mayor said she listened to when Trump was discussing the need to invest in a crumbling infrastructure and thought it appropriate to reach out.

Also, don’t expect Pugh to jump on any name-calling band wagon.

“I would never call a president-elect or a president or a governor or even you out of your name.”

MORE: WYPR Inside Maryland Politics: A Letter to Santa Trump (12/14/2016)

[kennethburns]

SRB preparing for Mayor Pugh

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is certainly making it known that she thinks state Senator Catherine Pugh will be the next mayor.

Rawlings-Blake told reporters that she thinks the “better than even money” is on Pugh being elected in the general election.  She also reminded the every one of the Democratic Party’s dominance of Baltimore before make the prognostication.

The mayor said she promised Pugh the best transition that the city has even seen.

“On Port Covington or any other issue, I’ve pledged to make myself as available as possible or not; whatever suits her needs,” she said.

Rawlings-Blake added that Pugh will not experience what she dealt with when she became mayor in 2010. She was City Council President at the time when then-Mayor Sheila Dixon resigned from office following her conviction for stealing gift cards intended for poor children.

“There was no conversation, no memo; no nothing,” the mayor said.  “The city deserves better than that.”

As far as where Rawlings-Blake will work after she leaves office; she remains tight lipped.  She said she would not be taking a break when she leaves city government in December and wasn’t checking the want ads either.

[kennethburns]

No one was fired because of DOJ report

There are a couple of reports that suggest Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis fired six people in light of the findings in the Justice Department “pattern or practice” investigation into the police department.  This is not the case.

My colleague, Mary Rose Madden, asked the commissioner if city residents can expect a house cleaning of Baltimore Police Department because of the findings.

What Davis said was:

“I’ve fired six police officers in 2016 alone.  That’s a small number.  But those who have left this agency deserve to leave this agency.  So I’ll continue to hold police officers accountable.  And I do that as much to remove them from our communities as to ensure that the good police officers know that their leadership is paying attention to good policing.”

A year does not begin in August; the report was released publicly Wednesday. Commissioner Davis received the full report less than a day before its public release.

In other words, between January 1 and August 10 six officers were released from employment at the Baltimore Police Department; nothing to do with the report.

It should also be noted here that the civil rights investigation into BPD actually evolved from a collaborative review after six officers were charged in May 2015.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, who requested the collaborative review in 2014, initially pushed back on a full scale civil rights investigation until a week later when she called asked for one.

[kennethburns]

Stokes: We keep f*cking over our children!

Note: Link to audio is below the fold.

As my colleague Yvonne Wenger from The Sun noted, Baltimore City Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke began to lobby her colleague Carl Stokes immediately after a preliminary vote on Monday raising the city’s minimum wage to $15 an hour.

While the bill passed the first hurdle with seven votes, eight is needed for the bill to go to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake when the final vote happens next Monday.

For Clarke, raising the minimum wage is about providing equal justice to those in the city’s most troubled neighborhoods, like Sandtown-Winchester in West Baltimore. 

"Our great civic reawakening to the truth that there is no peace without justice," Clarke said. "The economic justice we seek matters in raising up families and neighborhoods to their just and equal status throughout the city." (WBAL-TV/April 19, 2016)

Clarke making the case to Stokes said Baltimore is closer to Washington, D.C., where that city council signed off on raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.

“Yeah, there’re rich people there,” Clarke stated before Stokes interjected that “there are also lot of middle class people.”

“And there are a lot of poor people,” Clarke replied.

Stokes added that D.C. has a middle class African-American population “that is unlike Baltimore” with an education and “good government jobs.”

“Eighty-nine percent of our fourth graders are below proficiency.  Go see the kids who are graduating or not graduating from Baltimore city schools; they are not prepared,” said Stokes who added “we are completely failing the greater majority of our children.”

Clarke explained to Stokes that her theory is “that if you have opportunity for those children and their families, they will reach and grow for it. And if they don’t see it, they’re going to be depressed and discouraged about what’s the use of anything.”

Stokes said that sounded great but “after getting screwed over and over again in the schools,” by the time kids get to ninth grade they say “you lied to us; we cannot be anything we want.”

“Why are you so angry, Carl,” Clarke asked.

Stokes - after a second - responded, “Because we keep fucking over our children!”

“Because we keep doing to our children,” he continued.  “We keep fucking over our children and I’m sick of it.”

Stokes goes on to say:

“And then we try to make excuses as if all they have to do is hope and believe; all they have to do is think they can get there.  It doesn’t work that way.  As much as they might hope, they’re not going because we keep screwing them.  Let’s work on stop screwing our children.  Let’s work on having our children have good education.  And have recreation.  And have experiences and parks.  Let’s work on that.  Let’s work on having jobs and stop with the Port Covington thing were getting ready to ram through the council.” 

Here’s the NSFW audio.

https://soundcloud.com/pkennethburns/stokes-we-keep-fucking-over-our-children

[nikkiburdine]

Damage after flooding in Ellicott City

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Why Gene Ryan should not make personal attacks

Towson University Rhetoric Professor Richard Vatz explained what Baltimore FOP President Gene Ryan did right and wrong when it comes to addressing the public while expressing his thoughts on the trials in the Freddie Gray case.

In my story, I touched upon Vatz’ suggestions as to what Ryan should do going forward; not naming Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby by name and don’t make personal attacks.

Vatz’ says personal attacks are not a good idea addressing the public because you lose the audience you gain.

“When you get into personal reactions; when you get into labeling Marilyn Mosby as the wolf that lurks, you look childish,” Vatz says.

“And you lose a lot of the support that you get from your substantive communications which can be construed as not political.”

Also, Vatz says engaging in personal attacks gives political opponents anything to use to change the subject.

“You don’t want to give your opponent something to say ‘yo everyone, look at what kind of people they are; look at what they’re doing,” he added.

Let the politicians interpret the facts, Vatz suggests.  But Ryan should let the facts speak for themselves.

[kennethburns]

Lt. Ryan, let’s talk about the rhetoric

Lieutenant, in light of the tweets that your group has sent out, I’d like to take you up on your offer to talk about the last year.

Barley 24 hours had passed – let alone 48 – after I asked Lt. Gene Ryan, president of Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 3, how officers rebuild community trust while pointing out the rhetoric his organization has engaged in over the last year.

He said Thursday that if I wanted to talk about it, we can do so later.  But at that moment, he wanted to talk about the acquittal of Officer Caesar Goodson in last year;s death of Freddie Gray.  Goodson was found not guilty of the most serious charges in the case including second degree depraved heart murder and manslaughter (three different types for the record.)

Let’s start by going back to the future and point out some FOP’s remarks that upset community members and city leaders.

Days before the first unrest that took place in Baltimore last year, Ryan compared protesters to a “lynch mob” because the protesters called for the officers involved to be jailed immediately. (Baltimore Sun, April 22, 2015)

Nearly a month after the six officers involved were charged, crime spiked in Baltimore.  Many accused officers of performing a work slowdown as payback to protesters and to city leaders.  Ryan denied a work slow.  However, in a tweet, Ryan did say officers are afraid of going to jail “for doing their jobs properly.”

Then in July 2015, the FOP released their after action review.  Once again, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s famous (or infamous) misspeak on the first day of unrest; April 25, 2016.  Ryan eventually said he didn’t want then-Commissioner Anthony Batts to leave towards the end of a news conference to discuss the review.

The mayor eventually fired Batts the same day because the conversation was too much about him and not about how to stem another violent summer in good ol’ Baltimore.  It should be noted here that 2015 ended with the highest homicide count in decades.

Ryan blasted a $6.4 million settlement reached between the city and Freddie Gray’s family.  He said it was “ridiculous” because none of the trials had taken place and that the settlement “threatens to interrupt any progress made toward restoring the relationship between members of the Baltimore Police Department and the Baltimore City government.” (Baltimore Magazine, Sept. 10, 2015)

And now, we come to June 25, 2016, where someone with keys to the FOP3 twitter account posted these two memes. (Screen captures from WJZ)

Those memes were instantly criticized by Police Commissioner Kevin Davis and City Council President Jack Young.  The tweets have since been deleted.  No apologies have been offered by the FOP.

Now that later has come, I would like to ask Lt. Ryan, once again, how can his group and officers rebuild community trust; especially with the rhetoric that his organization engaged on barely a day after you said the trust has to be rebuild?  What should the community know about why those memes were tweeted out? 

[kennethburns]

State alleges Goodson took Freddie Gray on a rough ride

Prosecutors are now saying Freddie Gray died because of a “rough ride” on the way to the Western District police station.  The state made the accusation Thursday morning during opening statements in the trial of Officer Caesar Goodson, one of six charged in Gray’s death..

Chief Deputy State’s Attorney Michael Schatzow told Circuit Judge Barry Williams that Freddie Gray was injured because he got a “rough ride.”  And that a seat belt would have prevented Gray from receiving a broken neck while being transported to Western District in April 2015.

Schatzow also said Goodson “is no rookie officer.”  And that he trained other officers on how to transport prisoners.

Goodson attorney Andrew Graham responded “well, we certainly see things differently.”

Graham said the state’s characterization of his client was not true; calling Goodson “a nice guy” and a hard worker who supported other officers by driving the van.  Adding “prisoners have fallen asleep” because of Goodson’s driving style.

Goodson faces the most serious charges in Gray’s death including second degree depraved heart murder.  Graham called the charges unfair.

[kennethburns]

Getting into the head of Goodson

Police Officer Caesar Goodson, the van driver who transported Freddie Gray, is facing some serious charges; Second degree depraved heart murder, involuntary manslaughter, second degree assault, gross negligent manslaughter by vehicle, criminal negligent manslaughter by vehicle and misconduct in office.

The most serious count – depraved heart murder – carries a sentence of 30 years in prison.  And it’s far from a slam dunk.  The state has to establish the mens rea of Goodson the day Gray was arrested; April 12, 2015

In plain English, prosecutors will have to get into the mind of Goodson.

“They’ve got to pull his brain out and put it on the table and point to things in it to the jury to say ‘see, this is proof that he knew, he knew, he knew’ and that’s just not there because, remember, Goodson is the only officer statement that never gave a statement to anybody,” said Legal analyst and defense attorney Warren Brown.

Brown told me, in an earlier interview, that the serious charges involves the state proving Goodson knew Gray would suffer serious injury or death if he was not placed in a seat belt.

He added “it’s going to be difficult” because Goodson is the van driver; he picks up the detainees and takes them where they need to go.  “That’s basically it.”

Prosecutors no longer have to prove their case to a jury.  That’s because Goodson waived his right to a jury trial Monday.  That mean’s Circuit Judge Barry Williams will be the trier of fact deciding Goodson’s guilt or innocence.

[kennethburns]

West case remains closed without new evidence

The case of the death of Tyrone West will remain closed.

That word coming from the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office Thursday afternoon.  Spokeswoman Rochelle Ritchie said after a review of three investigations into West’s death the case will not be re-opened due to a lack of new evidence.

“We send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Tyrone West. While we understand the magnitude of their grief, after carefully reviewing three prior separate investigations, including an independent investigation, there has been no new evidence or additional information that would lead us to re-opening this case.”

Rochelle Ritchie, spokeswoman Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office

Tawanda Jones, West’s sister, told The Baltimore Sun she will gather information and put prosecutors to the test.

Baltimore BLOC, activists who have been advocating on behalf of the West Family since the incident nearly three years ago, called Mosby “petty” in a tweet vowed to get her voted out in 2018.

West died in July 2013 while in police custody after an encounter with officers in Northeast Baltimore who suspected that he was hiding a weapon in his sock.  After a foot chase and fight with officers, West was held to the ground and arrested. He stopped breathing shortly after that and died at an area hospital.

Then-State’s Attorney Gregg Bernstein cleared officers in the incident.  The medical examiner said West died from heart failure but it was not clear what caused it.

[kennethburns]

Periscope video of Baltimore City Councilman Nick Mosby announcing that he is dropping out of the mayor’s race.

[kennethburns]

Talking about...resolutions

As I came home from the MPT debate Tuesday night, I saw this flier in my door.  Councilman William “Pete” Welch is running for re-election in the ninth councilmanic district.  The back of this flier is rather interesting, you will see that below the fold.

Before I start analyzing, I need to do several disclaimers.  For starters, I do live in the ninth district in the Greater Rosemont area.  I AM NOT a registered democrat, so I will not be voting on April 26th in any primary.  Also, John Bullock, one of Welch’s challengers, was one of my professors at Towson University; by the way, Go Tigers!  With all of that said, as a reporter, I cannot take a position on a candidate one way or another.  Heck, I never endorsed a candidate when I was a columnist with PolitickerMD; so don’t look for one now.

Now let’s do the analyzing.

Welch, while campaigning, has made a point that he does the work and he doesn’t just talk.  As I reported in my story on the ninth district, he told a candidate forum recently “I’ve been in office for almost six years and I’ve watched people come every four years to the table.  They have these wonderful ideas but then you never see them again.”

Bullock has been pointing out that Welch likes giving resolutions to everyone who achieved something.  But Welch also has resolutions that actually deals with issues.  These resolutions that ask stuff of the mayor, general assembly or city agency are typically non-binding.  Hearings are held for them; the council gets a chance to hear from experts and residents on the topic of the resolutions.

Welch has proposed 22 resolutions during his five years in office.  You would not know that based on the above flier.

Let’s look at his first talking point; “Introduced legislation requiring non-violent conflict resolution as part of the Baltimore City school curriculum for K-12.″  That is actually a resolution.  In fact, the resolution’s purpose is for “the purpose of calling on Baltimore City Public Schools to take steps to systematically integrate lessons in non-violent conflict resolution into its K-12 curriculum to help provide our children with the conflict resolution skills they will need to succeed in life.”

Nowhere in the resolution does it require the school system to do anything.  In fact, the council cannot compel the school system to do anything.  The school system functions as a department of the State of Maryland.

The resolution which was adopted does have action attached to it.  “BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools, the Mayor, the Governor, and the Mayor’s Legislative Liaison to the City Council.”  In other words, a letter asking the school system, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Governor Larry Hogan to consider adding non-violent conflict resolution to the curriculum.  At that point, the school system can say no and move on.

Another talking point from the flier; “Authored legislation to provide trauma counseling for all Baltimore City school students who are subject to witnessing or experiencing acts of violence.”  Again, this is a resolution; it has no effect but to start a conversation about it.

As the purpose of the resolution says, it is for “calling on the Mayor and the CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools to act to 3 ensure that all of Baltimore’s children who have been affected by the recent violence have access to trauma counseling to help them move past this difficult time in their lives.”

Resolutions provide an opportunity to talk about issues, but it does not provide the money for services let alone the services themselves.  

The most honest talking point in the flier is his “[creating] legislation calling for the expansion of YouthWorks in to a year-round program.”  It’s honest because the resolution he wrote did exactly that.

This flier does leave questions; his co-sponsoring “legislation to provide $4.2 million dollars (sic) for after school programs,” is he referring to the youth fund that still needs to pass in November because it’s a charter amendment or is he going to find a way for the council to put the $4.2 million Rawlings-Blake cut from after-school programs in the budget proposal?

Also when he “fought for and obtained facility improvements in our schools,” does that mean he supported that $1.1 billion overhaul of city school buildings?

Another thing to note on this flier, there are no references to back up his claims.  Most incumbents I’ve seen in all the years I’ve been watching politics have some type of reference point or a website.  Also, the councilman is one of a few running in a city council race without a website.

[kennethburns]

@davidwarnock2016 and the turnaround truck makes a stop at Mund Park in East #Baltimore. #Election2016 (at Mund Park)

[kennethburns]

The Politics Of Helping Youth In Post Freddie Gray Baltimore

One of the main takeaways in last year’s riots (or uprising) in good ol’ Baltimore is that something should be done for the youth in the city.  We’ve seen this with the city’s push to get every participant in the YouthWorks program a summer job in 2015.

City Council President Jack Young proposed in September an amendment to the city charter that three percent of the city’s budget go to fund youth programs; similar to San Francisco, Oakland and Miami.  That bill was passed by the city council and then vetoed by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.

But the council performed its first override of a mayoral veto in three decades.  That veto also included Councilman Bobby Curran who held to a personal credo of NOT overriding a mayoral veto, but I digress.  Now it’s up to the voters to decide if Young’s charter amendment should be added.

There is one more bit of business that would affect the city’s youth that the mayor is hoping the city council will get to; her proposal to sell four city-owned downtown parking garages with the proceeds going towards building new recreation centers.

That proposal was sent to the council in August 2014 and has yet to have had a hearing.  The mayor says her proposal is fiscally sound and would put “real money” on the table to fund her $130 million plus plan to build new rec centers. But Young is a tad skeptical about the plan to say the least.

According to Young, he has been trying to get a compromise with the mayor.  The short version of the compromise involves using the revenue of the garages, located in prime downtown spots, as a way to fund the plan.  The mayor has not shown an interest in Young’s idea.

So with two political battles involving funding for youth, how does the back and forth look in post-Freddie Gray Baltimore?

“I think you should be asking this question to the council president; to the chair of the committee that refuses to hold a hearing,” Rawlings-Blake said Wednesday morning.

The mayor said she does not see the connection between her bill to sell parking garages - where the money would go towards building recreation centers that youth will use - and a charter amendment that would mandate a part of the budget go to programs for youth.

Rawlings-Blake describes Young and Councilman Carl Stokes, who would oversee the hearing on the Mayor’s bill as a committee chairman, as “people that are standing in the middle of the road blocking progress when it comes to having first class recreation centers.”

For his part, Stokes, who is also skeptical of the mayor’s plan, is on record saying a hearing on the mayor’s bill should happen…sort of.

The mayor’s proposal has an expiration date, the end of the city council term in December.  Much like Annapolis, any legislation that the council does not act on by that time will die.

[kennethburns]

Police Officer William Porter observing bill hearings on proposed police reforms. George Lettis from WBAL-TV reported that he was there to see what was going on and not to testify. Porter is one of six officers accused of #FreddieGray’s death last year. #Baltimore (at Annapolis, Maryland)