Police Commissioner Pleased With Results Of Baltimore Curfew
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Police Commissioner Anthony Batts says he's very pleased with the first few nights of the curfew.
Rick Ritter reports even with 2,000 National Guardsmen on city streets, Batts says the curfew is still needed.
From one side of the city to the other, their presence is known. After an unimaginable start to the week, the National Guard and police are taking back Baltimore.
"We've had two days of quiet and the city has become stable and settled itself down," Batts said.
A mandatory curfew implemented by the mayor proves to be effective. Streets are calm and peaceful---a relief after Monday night.
"We're extremely pleased and happy and applaud the residents and city of Baltimore," Batts said.
Many are wondering if the 10 p.m. curfew will be lifted for the weekend, especially business owners who say they've been impacted financially---but the commissioner asks the entire city for patience...especially with demonstrations planned in the days ahead, one expected to draw 10,000 protesters.
"Although we've had two days of peace and quiet, we still have a weekend to make it through," Batts said.
The week resulted in 201 arrests and 98 officers injured. Police are still looking for a man they say stabbed holes in fire hoses.
The ATF is offering a reward for information on who started a series of fires like the massive one that burned a senior center to the ground.
The National Guard says they'll eventually back down.
"We will not all pull out at once," said Maj. Gen. Linda Singh. "It's usually gradual."
But not anytime soon.
"We come in and we're working with you until we make sure everything is settled and we actually go back to normal operations," she said.
Batts says the heavy police presence will be in sight all weekend. In fact, he says he's called in extra reinforcements.
