Baltimore Mayor’s Staffers Jumping Ship
Four high-level staffers resign over 4 business days.
We’re all familiar with the proverb, rats flee a sinking ship. To see this in action on a human scale we need look no further than the offices of Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.
In a story that’s gotten remarkably little news coverage, the Baltimore Sun Times reports that four of the Mayor’s highest ranking staff have quit since six Baltimore police officers were charged in the death of Freddie Gray.
Among those who have resigned:
LeVar Michael, Head of the mayor’s Office of Nonviolent Programs, resigned on Wednesday, May 20.
Angela Johnese, Director of the Criminal Justice Office, resigned on Friday, May 22.
Heather Brantner, Coordinator of the Mayor’s Sexual Assault Response Team, also resigned on Friday, May 22. (Coincidence?)
Perhaps most shocking however, was the next resignation the following week:
Shannon Cosgrove, the Mayor’s own Deputy Director, resigned Tuesday, May 26 (the day after Memorial Day.)
For those without a calendar in front of them, that’s four high-level departures in a period of four business days.
What’s particularly notable is the reason each of those high-level staff gave for abruptly resigning their positions.
Haha, tricked you! None of them gave any reason whatever. They just up and left. Boom.
In other totally predictable news it turns out that the mayor’s office’s initial estimate that the “space to destroy” riots had cost the City of Baltimore $9 million was a slight underestimate.
The actual figure?
In fact, apparently no one is even willing to hazard a guess at a specific figure.
It seems certain, however, that the actual damages exceed $20 million, more than double the mayor’s estimate, and perhaps exceed that figure by a great deal.
Perhaps the current figures will pale in comparison to the damage that is likely to be inflicted on the City of Baltimore should the prosecution of the six police officers collapse.
Should be an interesting summer for Baltimore.
But hey, at least there’s a silver lining in the local city economy—the mayor’s office is likely to be hiring.
UPDATE (6/6/15): Yesterday the Baltimore Sun reported that a fifth member of Mayor Rawlings-Balke’s Office of Criminal Justice had jumpted ship. With the departure of Amy Hartman, a leader in the city’s public safety efforts, “nearly a third of the 16-member office is departing amid the recent surge in violence” in the Baltimore. (h/t commenter MousetheLuckyDog)
–-Andrew, @LawSelfDefense
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Comments
Why would the flee when they can take credit for the best riots since Ferguson. Great street creds.
I think, given their stupendous accomplishments in Baltimore, they are probably leaving to take high ranking positions in the Adminstration.
Has CNN recruited them?
Maybe they know she’s searching for people to blame and, hey, maybe some of these folks ARE to blame for the stupid actions.
Bingo, I think you have got it there, its scapegoats fleeing the ship, unfortunately that means the rats are still there, lol.
This is from that same paper, from a link in the side bar:
http://baltimore.suntimes.com/bal-news/7/101/134909/even-more-drugs-were-looted-in-baltimore
“It turns out even more drugs were looted from Baltimore pharmacies during riots last month than previously reported.
“According to the Baltimore sun, police are working with federal agents at the DEA in regards to recovering some of an estimated 175,000 doses of narcotics, barbiturates and other prescription drugs that were looted from 27 pharmacies and two Methadone clinics. Just now is the first time police disclosed that the Methadone clinics—clinics that distribute the powerful drug Methadone to patients that need it—were targeted in the riots.
“The report comes one day after Rite-Aid warned customers that their information may be in danger after looters stripped shelves of prescription bottles.
“If your pharmacy was looted during the Baltimore riots, you might have had medical information stolen
“And this isn’t even the worst of it. Gary Tuggle, the DEA agent tasked with helping Baltimore with this problem told the Sun that roughly 40 percent of the pharmacies affected by the riots haven’t even finished accounting for all the looted drugs during the riots.”
I admit that I have not been following this very closely, but this is the first time I have heard about this!
How can anyone, including the media, keep claiming that the riots were about “Justice For Freddie Gray” and “Black Lives Matter”??
175,000 doses of narcotics, barbiturates and other prescription drugs!! And that’s with only 60% reporting!! All those drugs, (probably paid for with Medicaid!!), now on the streets!! Gawd, I would not be a police officer there, or even work in the mayors office, for a million dollars! It’s anarchy!
When one or more of the officers are acquitted then Katie bar the door. Folks will see that as a convenient excuse to re-stock the supply of stolen pills.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1bL3LH30Q98#
Rioting for fun and profit – strongly reminiscent of the good old 60s. Was the post-riot sex as good?
Why does a Mayor need a Sexual Assault Response Team? Isn’t that a police responsibility?
It’s a liberal admin…they need everyone on board to control everything and spend money on everything.
Who is the Mayor planning on sexually assaulting?
The Mayor must be mad because there’s none for them.
Sounds like one of those “created positions so I can hire my buddies after the election” jobs.
“LeVar Michael, Head of the mayor’s Office of Nonviolent Programs, resigned on Wednesday, May 20.”
Well, apparently at least, the head of the Office of Violent Programs is still on board.
That office is kind of an oxymoron, considering that B’more just had the worst riots in over 50 years.
“In a story that’s gotten remarkably little news coverage.”
Remarkably little? Shouldn’t that be predictably little?
We all know the equation don’t we? The greatest propaganda tool is suppression and imbalance. If there is an approved policy agenda requiring an approved series of social impressions be it of some trajectory or momentum or whatever, no event, no matter how significant to a balanced view of social events, is news but is instead hate speech or simply old news. By such mechanisms, asking questions about such things as the resignations in the Baltimore mayor’s office elicit concern trolling responses such as ‘why would anyone want to know that’ to ‘we’ve moved on’ or even better, that’s already been fully addressed even if it hasn’t.
I’m amazed this country ever distinguished itself from the soviet union when decrying propaganda.
“What’s particularly notable is the reason each of those high-level staff gave for abruptly resigning their positions.
Haha, tricked you! None of them gave any reason whatever. They just up and left. Boom.”
Nice work…next time try asking these people to time their scandal closer to April 1 so you can land the big fish.
Looks like some highly placed officials with insider knowledge see some civil lawsuits coming down the pike, for wrongful arrests, etc., and want to be off that list.
They can’t get off the list, and they can’t hide.
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has one of two possibilities going on there.
Either they’re fleeing her sinking ship of fools and want no part in the ongoing/future flim-flam and perhaps potentially ultimately illegal maneuverings of spinning like a whirling dervish Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and the non-city-employee cabal of race-baiting race-hustlers perpetually surrounding her that’s at least advising and motivating her to some degree (Nation of Islam demonstrably being at least one such member of said cabal)–
Or, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is compelling them to abruptly resign and leave in favor of immediately replacing them with either her own handpicked people that she confidently feels will be supremely loyal lapdog rats to the bitter end whom will work tirelessly to keep her ship of fools afloat or go down with it during the desperate effort — or replacing them with people that have training and/or the adeptness of experience from within the cabal or provided-by the cabal that’s been assisting her since within a couple of days of the beginning of this entire ludicrous fiasco.
I’d wait and see whom she replaces all of them with in the near future, and check out their origins, experience, and backgrounds — bigtime.
Third possibility: They balked at being directed/asked/cajoled to destroy/hide evidence, such as emails, documents, directives, etc.. The police union is seeking all command communications during the riots, in particular the stand-down orders and related issues among the commanders and between them and the mayor.
I’ve noticed that the mayor is almost always surrounded by a phalanx of people who are mostly white. With the exception of the first name “LeVar”, none of those quitting seem to have black names. If that’s accurate, one has to wonder if the mayor surrounded herself with white libtards who could actually make the trains run on time but aren’t up for the anti-white racism and anti-police attitude she has demonstrated or any corrupt acts afoot now.
Also, I’m pretty sure I read somewhere that two of her staff quit shortly after the riots and it seems like it related to her stand-down directive that resulted in so many officers being injured. So it may actually be six who have quit so far.
I think that second sentence (starting at “or” and ending at “fiasco”) put you in first place for the longest sentence ever written on LI, by a contributor or commenter.
Should be starting at “Either” and ending at “fiasco”.
I see the fine hand of Al Sharpton and the federal Department of Injustice.
Given the propensity of high-ranking officials to throw lower ranking officials under the bus whenever their corrupt chickens come home to roost, I’m inclined to think this little clutch of officials has enough foresight to run while they still can.
It’s not clear that resigning now will protect them from any lawsuits which may be forthcoming.
I suspect rather that the mayor has some sort of coverup campaign in action, and rather than participate, these people are getting out before they get really deep into the illegal stuff.
I suspect Mayor Lady MacBeth forced them out. Because she’s a dangerous megalomaniac.
Because they don’t know any better. Of course everybody understood this had nothing to do with the death of Freddie Gray, but the destruction of the CVS looked pointless, or it was not apparent why not a supermarket. It was treating like an episode of insanty, or possibly opportunism.
It didn’t hit me – the prescription drugs! Also possibly the names of people receiving them and doctord writing them.
The CVS was burnt most probably to destroy evidence (like fingerprints or video)
Their leaving makes more “room to destroy”.
Make that five.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-mocj-20150605-story.html
In a side issue, the Judge presiding ovet the Baltimore 6 has issued a ruling on Mosby’s request for more time. She asked for 30 more days, he gave her 15.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-gray-motions-deadline-20150605-story.html
Thanks for these, I’ll follow up on them tomorrow. h/t to you, of course. 🙂
–Andrew, @LawSelfDefense
Sounds like one of those “created positions so I can hire my buddies after the election” jobs.
I’ve been to the Aquarium in the Inner Harbor many times before, lovely place. However, I’ll never go anywhere near Baltimore again…stupid people.
This is heartbreaking. The good people of Baltimore have worked so hard, for so many years, to build up that city and make it nice. There’s a solid core of hard-working black people like the woman in the link posted by Juba Doobai!, above, too.
This mayor, however, has thrown so much progress away by letting the jerks know they would have free rein to destroy, and also that the police would not be allowed to do their jobs. You can’t have nice things, if you are going to let the hood rats break them.
Seems the late mayor of Detroit Coleman Young might be the model for this current mayor and the state’s prosecutor. Either way, after all this, Baltimore will be a little poorer, less white, less safe and a lot more dysfunctional.
All evidence will be destroyed completely and they will claim that there is not a “shred of evidence” as obama and all other democrats are so fond of practicing. Any trial would take years and every one would plead the fifth. Fresh failures will dominate the news cycle.
I think they left because they saw the obama special bus coming down the street towards them. Everyone knows that when there is a problem all underlings will be thrown under this bus.