Nearly one year after the Brooklyn Day mass shooting, the Baltimore Police Department revealed the results of its internal investigation, signaling 12 staff members could face discipline, including termination. But there are lingering questions about what other agencies and programs did or didn’t do during the Brooklyn Day event that resulted in 30 people injured — two of them killed — in the early morning of July 2, 2023.
News of BPD staff disciplinary recommendations renewed criticism of other agencies, specifically the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) and the Safe Streets program. Before gunfire erupted, four Safe Streets workers were at the Brooklyn Day party and mediated five conflicts involving people who were known, or were suspected, to have weapons. The information about the potential threat, and the event itself, was never relayed to BPD or anyone in City Hall.
“As of right now, we have not had any other[s]. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future,” Mayor Brandon Scott said when asked about possible discipline for Safe Streets workers. “I would not talk about what happened in an investigation out openly even if I did know.”
In a statement released on social media, Mike Mancuso, president of BPD’s union, took a jab at the lack of action taken against any other city agency or leadership within BPD itself.
“Thirty plus people were shot last year at the ‘Brooklyn Day Cookout’ [sic] and a Lieutenant and some lower ranking officers are the only people being charged? Not one person above the rank of Lieutenant has been held responsible for this debacle,” Mancuso said in his statement.
In March 2024, FOX45 News obtained a copy of the new escalation policy for Safe Streets workers, directing them to alert MONSE if they become aware of a large community event. The policy, however, never mentions weapons or law enforcement. When asked previously about the policy, Scott said MONSE staff know when to get BPD involved if necessary.
The Brooklyn Safe Streets site is managed by Catholic Charities. In a statement to FOX45 News, Mark Cheshire, a Catholic Charities spokesperson made it clear the Safe Streets workers left the event by 12:20 a.m. on July 2, 2023. Once the violence interrupters learned of the shooting, the Brooklyn site director was notified, and two staff members returned to Brooklyn Homes, while others went to the hospital where victims were being treated. The escalation policy has been implemented, according to Cheshire.
“Our Safe Streets Brooklyn team continued to support the community in the weeks and months that followed and actively maintain a positive presence in Brooklyn,” Cheshire said in the statement. “We are grateful for their service and dedication to making Brooklyn a safer neighborhood for all.”
Now that the escalation policy is in place, FOX45 News asked Scott if Safe Streets workers would be disciplined if they were to not alert MONSE staff in the future.
“If and that’s a big if — but I think we also have to be reminded that where the information for Brooklyn Day — we are not going to allow this to be made into a thing where we focus only on Safe Streets, this is about everybody. If anybody violates any policy for city government, we will hold them accountable,” he said. “Period.”
The disciplinary actions against the BPD staff members are not final, they have the chance to challenge the charges they are facing. It’s unclear when, or if, that process will play out.
