In the News

Browse news coverage about the State’s Attorney’s Office.

Baltimore can’t afford to shortchange anti-violence investments | STAFF COMMENTARY

Across Maryland, local governments are facing tough choices as they finalize their budgets for the coming fiscal year. A statewide mandate to upgrade K-12 public schools — along with a desire not to raise taxes on inflation-weary consumers — is a common lament in counties large and small. But in Baltimore, the stakes may be highest of all. That’s because Mayor Brandon Scott and members of the Baltimore City Council must decide before the month’s end how to allocate limited resources to public safety. Their decision essentially corresponds with the answer to this question: What approach works best when it comes to reducing gun violence in Baltimore?

Protecting young Black lives and the neighborhoods we call ‘home’

That last image conjures up mixed emotions for many Baltimoreans. Some see themselves in these young men and women, enjoying the feeling of invincibility that comes with being young. For others, the loud bikes weaving in and out of traffic and on sidewalks are more than an annoyance– they can be frightening for both pedestrians and drivers. It is for the safety of everyone in the community, including the young people riding helmet-less and driving at break-neck speeds, that compels State’s Attorney Ivan Bates, as the top prosecutor in the City, to enforce the laws already on the books regarding dirt bike riding.

To combat youth violence Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates has two words: “parental accountability”

From here on out, Bates said, his office would look at bringing charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, which carries a fine of up to $2,500 and a maximum sentence of three years in prison. Bates said he will seek to hold parents and guardians accountable who do not prevent or report delinquencies or reach out for further help to the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services.

Ivan Bates: Baltimore’s ‘Profiles in Courage’ prosecutor | READER COMMENTARY

I have been an admirer of Bates since 2022 when I asked and secured him to speak to my political persuasion class. I had had a wide array of admirable and diverse politicians and political partisans speak in my class over more than four decades of teaching including Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., then-soon-to-be Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Comptroller Peter Franchot, Gov. Larry Hogan, Judge Catherine Curran O’Malley (husband Martin O’Malley did not come, but he would have been quite welcome), state Sen. Jim Brochin, Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford, Del. Kathy Szeliga, Baltimore Sun sports columnist Mike Preston and several others. They were all politicians (save Preston) whom I revered ethically, all well-prepared and all who had served admirably in my opinion.