ViraScoop
In the annals of video footage of police misconduct, this new video from a Baltimore police officer’s body camera in January ranks as not particularly violent but still shocking. The video, obtained by local news station Fox45, appears to show the officer planting a bag of pills in a trash can in an alley then returning to the alley and pulling the drugs out. Baltimore police body cameras are programmed to save 30 seconds of footage prior to the moment when they’re turned on — a fact this officer either didn’t know or didn’t care about.
The fate of the man who was arrested in connection with the planted drugs, who was reportedly jailed on $50,000 bail, is unclear.
According to Fox Baltimore, the prosecutor told the defendant’s lawyer that they were “appalled” by the footage and dropped the case the next day.
But the Baltimore Sun is also reporting that the Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office that was prosecuting the case offered the defendant a plea deal after reviewing the footage.
[BuzzFeed]
Meanwhile, the officer shown in the video was reportedly called by prosecutors to testify in an unrelated case after the video was made public.
Baltimore police also issued a statement:
“We take allegations like this very seriously and that’s why we launched an internal investigation into the accusations. We are fortunate to have Body Worn Cameras which provide a perspective of the events as reported.”
Police would not say if the officer in question is on active duty while the internal investigation is underway.
h/t Digg
