BALTIMORE (AP) - Mayor Catherine Pugh says she's confident Baltimore can afford to implement the police reforms outlined in a proposed consent decree with the U.S. Justice Department.
Pugh made that assurance to U.S. District Judge James Bredar (breh-DAHR') at the opening of a hearing on the agreement Wednesday. Once the judge is satisfied that the sweeping reforms are fair, adequate and reasonable and enters the decree, it becomes court-enforceable.
Afterward, the mayor told reporters she has put money in the city budget for implementation, expects a Ford Foundation grant and is seeking state funds. She didn't provide dollar figures.
The proposed consent decree stems from an investigation sparked by the 2015 death of Freddie Gray, a young black man whose neck was broken while in police custody.
