City Leaders Firing Back After Comments Made By Former Police Commissioner
EMMITSBURG, Md. (WJZ) --Former Police Commissioner Anthony Batts is speaking for the first time since he was fired by the mayor of Baltimore.
He addressed students at Mount St. Mary's University on Wednesday night and accused city officers of "taking a knee" after the riots.
WJZ's Meghan McCorkell has reaction from city leaders.
During a panel discussion, Batts addresses the crowd by asking if anyone has been fired before?
"July 8th I was fired for the first time in my life from a job I took as police commissioner," Batts said.
He was let go when crime spiked in the wake of the Freddie Gray riots.
During Wednesday night's discussion, he told the forum he thinks at some point Baltimore Police officers "took a knee".
Batts eludes to the point that officers didn't feel support so they let the crime rate go up.
On Thursday, police leaders are firing back at those allegations.
"I think police officers generally whether it's in Baltimore or elsewhere take offense to that type of simplistic statement. Police officers haven't taken a knee," said Interim Police Commissioner Kevin Davis.
Davis says his officers are disappointed in Batts' statements.
Batts also spoke about the lack of public trust in Baltimore Police. Something Davis says he's working on.
"We'll point to this moment as a time when things changed," Davis said.
The mayor says she stands behind her decision to let Batts go.
"He had become a distraction and my focus on making sure that Baltimore's safe," she said.
She says she believes the current leadership is making progress towards that goal.
Commissioner Davis says he hasn't had time to sit down with Anthony Batts, but considers him a friend and respects him as a significant figure in law enforcement.
Davis says the department has made strides since he became became interim commissioner, with gun seizures up to 44-percent in the city.
