25 Correctional Officers Indicted: Baltimore State's Attorney

BALTIMORE, MD — A long-term investigation led to the indictment of 25 correctional officers, according to Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby. She said the allegations of excessive force and creation of a criminal enterprise dated back to 2016.

The 25 officers who were indicted are members of the Baltimore Central Regional Tactical Unit within the pretrial detention services, according to the state's attorney. The indictments, which have not been made public, totaled 236 counts, including charges of witness intimidation and tampering, destruction of evidence, assaults and other offenses, Mosby reported.

Authorities learned of the alleged misconduct "by way of rumors and anecdotes" about excessive force, Mosby said.

In some cases, she said officers inflicted serious injuries that could lead to disfigurement.

The governor issued a statement commending investigators for rooting out corruption.

"Today’s announcement follows an extensive investigation initiated by our Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services," Gov. Larry Hogan said in a statement Tuesday. "Our administration funded more prosecutors for the state’s corruption unit and doubled the number of investigators for prison corruption. We strengthened the gang statutes that will be used to prosecute these horrendous crimes."

Since he took office, Hogan said anti-corruption efforts have netted more than 200 arrests.

"We are again making clear that we have absolutely no tolerance whatsoever for corruption of any kind in our state prison system or anywhere else in state government," Hogan said. "Our correctional officers have one of the most difficult jobs in all of public safety, and we will not let the criminal behavior of the few tarnish the great work of the nearly 5,000 dedicated officers who serve with distinction every single day."