In some cases, they even resold the very drugs and guns they were supposed to take off the streets. "The larger-than-life career of former New Haven police Lt. William 'Billy' White came to a stunning conclusion Monday when the high-profile lawman was sentenced to more than three years in prison . NOW IT HAS JUSTICE. Sergeant Thomas Allers, another supervisor, is serving a 15-year sentence in Florida and his release date is in June 2030. Family seeks justice from city after crash involving GTTF, Family of man killed in 2010 crash linked to GTTF case files lawsuit, Baltimore pays out $575K in latest Gun Trace Task Force settlement, Lawyer of man who went to jail behind GTTF allegations talks settlement, GTTF police misconduct cases costs Baltimore another $500K, Rapper Young Moose to get $300K from city in Gun Trace Task Force settlement, Independent investigator releases Gun Trace Task Force report, I-Team: City taxpayers have spent over $14M to cover GTTF settlements, City set to pay out more than $10M in GTTF settlements, City Board of Estimates to consider more than $500K payout related to GTTF lawsuit, $1.1M in police misconduct settlements approved in Baltimore, Court rules city on hook for settlements in 2 Gun Trace Task Force lawsuits, Attorney: Baltimore City shouldn't have to pay settlements in GTTF case, Mosby seeks to have 790 'tainted' convictions thrown out, Leaders question if Baltimore should be financially responsible for GTTF lawsuits, Report details taxpayer payouts in Baltimore police misconduct cases, Lawsuit against former gun squad members seeks $40M, Former detectives found guilty in corruption trial, Get the WBAL-TV app; Sign up for email alerts, Baltimore pays out $575K in latest GTTF settlement. These undated photos provided by the Baltimore Police Department show, from left, Daniel Hersl, Evodio Hendrix, Jemell Rayam, Marcus Taylor, Maurice Ward, Momodu Gando and Wayne Jenkins, the seven police officers who are facing charges of robbery, extortion and overtime fraud, and are accused of stealing money and drugs from victims, some of whom had not committed crimes. Mr. Kings attorney, Levin, also represented Jenkins. Long Waits, Short Appointments, Huge Bills. On 1 March, 2017, Sergeant Wayne Jenkins and six of his subordinate officers from the Gun Trace Task Force walked into the Baltimore Police Department's Internal Affairs building, believing. Jenkins would also give overtime pay as a reward for gun seizures, former detectives testified. Retired Baltimore Police Sgt. Ex-police sergeant . For good measure, some cops in the unit stole scads of overtime from the city, at times even collecting it while they were on vacation. This includes a Philadelphia police officer, Eric Snell, who had previously been a part of the BPD and had ties to the GTTF. Stay up to date on the news from Silicon Valley, and how to take back control of your data and devices. Updated King and Antonio L. Murray are two former Baltimore Police Department officers sentenced to a total of 454 years (reduced to 20) in prison after an FBI investigation in 2005. After the death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore in 2015, all eyes were on the police officers accused of causing the fatal spinal injury Gray suffered while in police custody, and on the prosecutor . Prior to the Gun Trace Task Force case, the case of King and Murray was one of the highest-profile Baltimore police corruption cases. Heilman, 27, was fired from the department in 2018 after passersby saw him found slumped over in his car in the early afternoon in Pigtown. You cant rob people just because theyre drug dealers, he said. >> IT WAS IS THE HIGHEST MAGNITUDE OF ABUSE OF POWER. Gondo, 36, was a member of the Gun Trace Task Force, and he was the only officer in the case to be charged as part of two separate criminal conspiracies, originally facing a possible sentence of 60 years. The case began in 2015 when the DEA found. In a one-on-one interview this week, the commissioner told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren he is committed to reform. "We think the settlement is warranted due to the egregious facts in this case," said John Solter, an attorney for the family.Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, a member of the Board of Estimates, said this case exemplifies the need for police reform, training and oversight. Rivera-Martinez, 32, was found guilty by a Baltimore City Circuit Court jury for beating Melvin Townes, then 16, in the face and head repeatedly with his stun gun after chasing him on North Gay Street about 2 a.m. on July 5, 2016. Baltimore police officer Julie Pitocchelli, who was a member with the department since 1994, Baltimore Police Detective Carmine Vignola, Sgt. When he was indicted, Rivera-Martinez was suspended without pay. Gaff ordered a male passenger out of a vehicle in South Baltimore and pushed and hit the man when he failed to show his identification, according to prosecutors. For the series of police commissioners and mayors that Baltimore went through during the units crime spree, those statistics offered a good enough proxy for progress. Chuang agreed, saying 20 years for King and Murray roughly corresponds with the type of sentences presently imposed in comparable police corruption cases in this District.. "The bad outweighed the good.". In 2015, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) started investigating the unit. They needed to make sure the city was held accountable," said Judson Lipowitz, an attorney for the family. Amid soaring crime and distrust in law enforcement, the unit played both cops and robbers, said lead federal prosecutor Leo Wise. There were wrongful convictions, the death of an innocent civilian and the mysterious killing of a detective who was shot a day before he was scheduled to testify against the unit. The two others Daniel Hersl and Marcus Taylorpleaded not guilty and were convicted in 2018. Jenkins previously pled guilty to multiple charges. One of the culprits that emerges from the book is the war on drugs itself. The list of officers includes some who were charged last year but not tried or have reached plea deals until this year. If anyone ran, the officers would chase after them. Wayne Jenkins once showed squad members a grappling hook with a rope, sledgehammer, machete, masks and other items he kept in his patrol car while on duty. After the group stole over $100,000 from a safe, Ward testified he was given a $20,000 cut. One officer routinely carried a BB gun as insurance, knowing he could always drop it at a crime scene if he got into a jam by, say, shooting an unarmed suspect. As they saw it, they were victimizing criminals who would not dare talk to authorities. The aftershocks of the GTTF scandal continue to be felt to this day. Ward admitted stealing money during traffic stops and while executing search warrants. He is expected to be released in May 2027. He resigned four months later amid the tax charges. King is grateful to the Court for recognizing that a reduction of his earlier sentence of 315 years was warranted, said attorney Steve Levin, who filed for the reduction along with Murrays attorney Andrew C. White. Detective Kevin Brown, currently suspended, was charged with driving under the influence in August. The wide array of crimes the GTTFs officers engaged in is staggering. And more officers tied to the Gun Trace Task Force were charged or sentenced in federal court. Sergeant Wayne Jenkins, who was the leader of the unit, pleaded guilty to multiple charges including racketeering, robbery, and falsification of records and was sentenced to 25 years in prison, the stiffest of all the sentences. The indictment was returned on February 23, 2017, and unsealed today following the execution of arrest and search warrants. The officers attorneys noted that former Gun Trace Task Force Sgt. Hersl and Taylor both received 18-year sentences. The extent of the GTTFs reign of terror on the city of Baltimore became more widely known in 2017, when eight members of the unit were indicted on charges of extortion, robbery, racketeering, and overtime fraud. Testimony and evidence presented during the trial brought to light shocking criminality that continued even as US Justice Department civil rights lawyers investigated Baltimores Police Department. Former detectives Daniel Hersl and Marcus Taylor were convicted of. Former Baltimore police officer Arthur Williams, 26, was found guilty of second-degree assault in June after body-camera footage that went viral showed him punching a man several times in East Baltimore back on a sidewalk in 2018. Cell phone video outside of the Custom House Avenue strip club around 1:20 a.m., showed an officer pulling Middleton, who was off-duty, to the ground by her shirt collar. BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Baltimore's largest police corruption scandal is in the national spotlight with a new HBO drama. It's just awful.". Jemell Rayam is serving 12 years and is currently in a secure medical detention facility in Minnesota. Some people are upset at the way iPhones charge. Koushall was charged with assault assault after being accused of striking fellow officer Sgt. His release date is in 2025. Among the many striking revelations in the book is how casual the officers were about their crimes. Cellphone video outside of the Custom House Avenue strip club around 1:20 a.m. showed an officer pulling Middleton, who was off-duty, to the ground by her shirt collar. Leader Of Corrupt Baltimore PD Task Force Sentenced To 25 Years Behind Bars. We will investigate bad policing or criminal policing Officers will be indicted and theyll be brought into court and theyll be held accountable.. Another convicted former detective, Maurice Ward, testified that some officers in the task force kept BB guns in their vehicles in case they needed to plant them on suspects, according to WBAL-TV. Prosecutors obtained text messages that showed conversations between Snell and family members dating back to 2014. Meanwhile, the disputes that inevitably erupt between dealers, and the desperation of people addicted to drugs, help feed the violence that plagues Baltimores most vulnerable communities. Rayam had admitted to crimes dating back to 2009. REPORTER: THEIR MOTHER DIED 8 YEARS AFTER THE CRASH NOW THEY BELIEVE THE CITY OF BALTIMORE IS ACCEPTING RESPONSIBILITY. A jury also found Taylor guilty for his role in several robberies involving other members of the squad, including an incident where the officers stole over $100,000 from a high-level drug trafficker's safe. "We didn't go above and beyond to make sure we were checking, to make sure that those people sworn to serve and protect hadn't turned themselves into the biggest gang in Baltimore," Scott said. They were supposed to be sentinels guarding this city from people who break the law, Wise told the jury in closing arguments last week, CNN affiliate WBAL-TV reported. >> IT MEANS A LOT TO ME AND MY FAMILY. A corrupt Baltimore City cop who was described as Baltimore Police's "golden boy" and widely viewed within the police department as "untouchable" is actually going to jail. So, finally, after all these years, we'll get some justice for our parents Every time you speak about it, you get choked up. Screen grab of body camera footage of an arrest by Sgt. Det. Three juveniles were arrested Tuesday night after a high-speed chase that led officers across state lines. Where are they now? The driver of the second vehicle in the crash was taken to the hospital for minor injuries. The federal system has no parole, but following the sentence reductions both officers could be released to halfway houses soon, their attorneys said. A third officer came over and intervened. Eight members of the nine-person squad ended up going to federal prison after being convicted on corruption charges. This years charges range from drunken driving to an officer being sentenced to five years in prison after nearly running over a man in a crosswalk, then drawing his gun after the man spilled tea on his car. The victim, Dashawn McGrier, suffered a broken jaw, broken ribs and other ailments while spending three days in a hospital. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Gondo admitted that he provided information and protection to a heroin operation, which included a childhood friend. He was investigated for an $11,000 theft that year. Retired Baltimore Police Sgt. From the bench, Baltimore Circuit Judge Yolanda Tanner said Williams repeated blows to McGrier were without justification. She sentenced him to 9 months in jail after finding Williams guilty of second-degree assault and official misconduct. Did you encounter any technical issues? He testified under oath that he witnessed Yusuf Smith toss a handgun while running from officers on the Alameda in May 2018. Carmine Vignola, left, shown walking with his lawyer Gary Proctor, pled guilty for making false statements to a grand jury relating to the GTTF investigation. 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