Baltimore Fraternal Order Of Police Lodge Vandalized, Flag Burned

BALTIMORE, MD — The American flag was burned and Baltimore City Fraternal Order of Police Lodge were defaced Saturday night in north Baltimore, according to a statement from the FOP, which attributed the damage to "anarchists." The head of the union said it was hurtful not only that the lodge was targeted but also that top brass in the department did not immediately reach out.

"This was an attack on not only our building but also on the men and women of the Baltimore Police Department, both active and retired," Mike Mancuso, president of the FOP in Baltimore, said in a statement Sunday.

Protesters in Hampden Saturday night met for a sit-in to show solidarity with those in Portland, Oregon, where federal officers have tear-gassed demonstrators, according to the Baltimore Sun.

The group in Baltimore called for defunding the police and spray-painted messages like "Defund BPD" and "Pigs" at the FOP lodge, the Sun reported.

Members of the Hampden community helped clean up the damage, Mancuso said Sunday afternoon.

Mancuso said there was one person he wished would have offered support after the vandalism.

"Commissioner Harrison was available, several weeks ago, to kneel in the street" with protesters, Mancuso said. "The fact that he seems to have disappeared during all of this is disgusting."

Within hours of Mancuso's statement about the vandalism, the commissioner issued his own official remarks condemning the acts.

“Last night, the Baltimore City Fraternal Order of Police building was targeted and vandalized with derogatory messages and an American flag was burned," Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said in a statement Sunday.

"There is an active and ongoing investigation into this act of vandalism and destruction of property," Harrison said. "While we will continue to engage with our communities to create and repair community-police relations and protect the first amendment rights of our residents, we will absolutely not tolerate acts of vandalism and will hold these offenders accountable."

President Donald Trump this week pledged to send federal agents in the wake of violence in cities like Chicago, Baltimore and Portland. Called Operation Legend, the plan calls for a "surge of federal law enforcement into American communities plagued by violent crime," Trump said.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Baltimore City Council President Brandon Scott and Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby have all said an influx of federal law enforcement is unnecessary.

The governor has praised the city for its peaceful demonstrations.

The city council president, who is also the Democratic nominee for mayor, said the city needs funding for infrastructure and services other than law enforcement.

And the city's top prosecutor said if federal agents are deployed and engage in wrongful arrests, her office will prosecute them.

After the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May, protests have been ongoing in Portland, Oregon. Trump said he sent federal agents to Oregon’s largest city to halt the unrest but state and local officials say they are making the situation worse, the Associated Press reports.