Baltimore Police Officer Coughing Video Condemned: Coronavirus

BALTIMORE, MD — Authorities say they are investigating after a Baltimore Police Department sergeant was seen coughing near people in southeast Baltimore in a video posted online Tuesday morning. The commissioner called the action "incomprehensible" and assured residents an internal investigation was underway.

"What we saw in the video is alarming because this pandemic is affecting lives not only nationally, worldwide but right here in our own police department," Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said in a statement.

Eight police officers and two civilian employees have tested positive for COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus, according to the latest police department data. On Tuesday, 120 officers were self-quarantined. Officials said the southwest district station, which had been closed Sunday after an officer there tested positive for the disease, had reopened.

"It is not only disturbing, but incomprehensible," Harrison said of the officer's behavior, "especially considering the high level of strong and clear guidance that we have provided from the beginning regarding COVID-19."

Police said the officer's body-worn camera footage is under review as part of an investigation by the Baltimore Police Department's Public Integrity Bureau.

The Instagram video that sparked the probe shows the sergeant coughing as he walks by a woman outside an apartment complex. He does not cover his cough, which is one way the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been encouraging people to stop the spread of the virus.

"I should call the CDC," the woman says after the officer coughs. (Editor's note: The video contains profanity and may be offensive.)

In Baltimore City, 459 people had tested positive for the coronavirus as of Tuesday morning, according to the Maryland Department of Health, which said more than 4,300 people have tested positive for the virus in the state.

The coughing incident occurred around Perkins Homes, according to the Baltimore Sun.

"This is not behavior that we want our police officers or any of our public servants to model to our residents," Council President Brandon Scott said in a statement Tuesday. After he saw the footage of the policeman "deliberately coughing at a resident," he said he sent it to the commissioner.

"COVID-19 is not a joke, and this behavior is beyond unacceptable," Scott said. "When you are in public service, it is your duty to treat everyone with respect, especially when we are dealing with both a public health pandemic and a gun violence epidemic."

There have been 74 homicides so far this year, the Baltimore Police Department reported Tuesday morning.

Nine people in the city have died from the coronavirus as of Tuesday morning, according to state health officials. More than 100 people have died from COVID-19 in Maryland overall so far.

During a visit Tuesday afternoon to the Baltimore Convention Center, where a field hospital is being set up to treat recovering coronavirus patients, Gov. Larry Hogan declared Baltimore among 12 jurisdictions in the state that were "hot spots" for the virus.

"Everyone can contract COVID-19, and all of Baltimore has to take this seriously and treat each other with respect," Scott said. "For public servants, this means carrying out duties with safety and compassion at the forefront of all actions. For citizens, this means adhering to the advice of public health professionals while following government guidelines issued to save lives. I will be following up with the commissioner regarding this disturbing incident."

Related:

• MD Coronavirus: Peak Estimate Released, Baltimore-Washington Declared 'Hot Spot'
• Coronavirus: Police Commissioner Closed Southwest District
• MD Coronavirus: 4,371 Confirmed Cases, 103 Deaths As Of April 7