RadioOnFire.com - Late last night, Baltimore City filed a motion opposing a Department of Justice request for more time to review the consent decree.
Lawyers for the city contend that there's no reason the next step in the process should be delayed.
The city also argued that any postponement would undermine public confidence in police reform.
A public hearing is set for Thursday.
Yesterday, city and police leaders made it very clear that they want the process to move forward.
"We are ready to roll with the consent decree," Davis said. "I want to say to the community in particular that the Police Department is absolutely dedicated to the consent decree process. There is no backroom deals, no slight of hand. I'm telling you straight from my mouth to your ears that I want this consent decree."
Davis called the DOJ's request to delay the process disappointing. After a check around the country, he suggested that most police chiefs believe consent decrees are a good thing.
"After a consent decree experience, when it's done right, that police department is forever changed for the better," Davis said.
The mayor said the consent decree in Baltimore will help solve crimes because it addresses years of unconstitutional policing and abusive treatment of residents.
"What is inside that consent decree is absolutely what we need to not only reform the Police Department, but to gain the trust we need in our communities," Pugh said.
The mayor also sees the consent decree as the basis to get more money, some of which has already been committed to the city, for upgrades to police training and technology.
But it's anybody's guess what happens next. The DOJ's request follows a meeting last week between the president and leaders of the national Fraternal Order of Police, which is a staunch opponent of court-ordered reforms.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions said consent decrees undermine police. He has ordered all consent decrees nationwide to be reviewed.
Can reform happen without a federal court order? State Delegate Curt Anderson, D-Baltimore City, suggested without detail that the General Assembly might get involved.
Source WBAL
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