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Mayor Pugh And Police Commissioner Discuss Hopes For 2017

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Newly-elected Baltimore City Mayor Catherine Pugh, and Baltimore City Police Commissioner Kevin Davis spoke with WJZ's Vic Carter and Mary Bubala during the WJZ New Year's Special and took the time to address the year that's passed and their hopes for 2017.

Mayor Catherine Pugh says she's hoping for a more peaceful year in 2017. "I want us to recognize that every part of our city is important," says Pugh.

Working throughout the neighborhoods to improve those neighborhoods. Getting people working, caring for the homeless in our communities. Making people realize also this a wonderful, wonderful city, great business opportunities here. I'm just looking forward to working with all segments of our community and bring Baltimore together."

Pugh says she plans on using the new year as mayor in hopes of "Working throughout the neighborhoods to improve those neighborhoods. Getting people working, caring for the homeless in our communities. Making people realize also this a wonderful, wonderful city, great business opportunities here. I'm just looking forward to working with all segments of our community and bring Baltimore together."

As for Police Commissioner Kevin Davis, he says "2016 was a year of successes and challenges."

Commissioner Davis says indeed, "There was a lot going on in 2016" for the Baltimore City Police Department.

"We got through several trials of police officers, we got through the one year anniversary of the death of Freddie Gray. There were a lot of prognosticators thinking that we were going to have additional unrests. Probably 120,00 man hours were dedicated to protests, just in 2016 alone. We had a mayoral election, we had a presidential election, we had a Department of Justice Investigation," says Davis.

In the coming year, Davis says "2017 has to be all hands on deck with the crime fight."

Davis says in the new year the Department will be focusing on "violence, property crimes," he says.

"It's the police and the community working together to identify this really small number of bad guys who are out here and causing problems for all of us," says Davis.

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