Baltimore's Mayor is looking for help to combat crime in her city.
Catherine Pugh met with Governor Larry Hogan for about an hour in Annapolis Monday, discussing options on the state and city level.
"I came away with the commitment that we will work together to collaborate and reduce violence in the city of Baltimore," Pugh told reporters afterwards.
The Mayor says her administration has looked to other cities for examples of successful crime fighting techniques. With help from the Department of Justice (DOJ), she wants to bring those systems to Baltimore, but will need to upgrade police technology to make it work. Those upgrades would include an improved "shot spotter" gunfire detection system, license plate readers, electronic ticketing, computers in every police cruiser and more.
"There's always a price tag, but we don't have the total price tag yet," Pugh said.
She says she will meet with the Governor again in a couple of weeks to further discuss cost, and how the state can contribute. She also says Hogan has ideas of his own.
"He favors laws that are already on the books," she said.
Shareese DeLeaver-Churchill with the Governor's Office says Hogan is committed to reducing crime in Baltimore.
"The administration will continue supporting and working with the Mayor, local law enforcement, and all city leadership to combat this crisis and help ensure the safety and well-being of city residents," said DeLeaver-Churchill.
Mayor Pugh says the two did agree on retooling the parole system in Baltimore. Eighty percent of city crimes have been committed by someone on, or just released from, parole. They also discussed forging better cooperation with state law enforcement, like the MTDA and MTA.
The Mayor says she will welcome representatives DOJ representatives to the city as soon as August to start working on solutions to the crime problem.
