Baltimore City FOP president Lt. Gene Ryan has written a letter to the Baltimore Sun pointing a finger at the policies of States Attorney Marilyn Mosby as bearing some responsibility for the death of Baltimore County police officer Amy Caprio.
Officer Caprio was run over and killed last week while contacting a suspect about a stolen vehicle. The teen suspect, Dawnta Harris, was supposed to be under house arrest for previous stolen vehicle offenses at the time of the incident.
Ryan wrote in part:
“The failure, however, lies with State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby and her continuing inability to understand the importance that her office plays in combating crime in Baltimore City.
The safety of our citizens is dependent on a relationship between the Police Department and the judiciary, including Ms. Mosby and her staff, a relationship that honors the common goal of providing for the public protection. For too long now, that relationship has been strained by Ms. Mosby’s apparent “catch and release” philosophy of criminal enforcement.
Dawnta Harris is the latest on a long list of those who have posed an obvious danger to the community but who have, for whatever reason, been released pending trial or in many instances have not even stood trial. Whether or not the home detention system used to hinder his movement was equipped with a GPS locator is not the failure in this sad saga. The fact that he was sent home pending trial at all is the true failure here. Mr. Harris has a history of criminal activity and escape. He undeniably presented a danger to our citizens and should have been detained accordingly.”
