The
City Council voted 12 to 2 in favor of his appointment earlier Monday,
while a few dozen activists critical of police tactics protested outside
the chamber and in nearby streets.
Mr. Davis, 46, has been in the job since July, when Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake fired his predecessor,
Anthony W. Batts. She said at the time that Mr. Batts had become “a
distraction” in a city trying to confront a surge in violent crime after
Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man, died of injuries suffered while in police custody in April. Six officers have been charged in his death.
Mr.
Gray’s death precipitated widespread rioting and was followed by a
spike in violence to levels that Baltimore had not seen in decades.
There have been 270 homicides this year, a sharp increase from the same
period last year, and shootings are up more than 75 percent.
Mr. Davis will be given a five-year contract and control of a department of about 4,000 civilian and sworn personnel.
As
interim commissioner, Mr. Davis, who is white, earned support from
important political leaders of this predominantly black city. He joined
the department in January as deputy commissioner and previously served
as chief of police in Anne Arundel County, which extends south from the
city.
Despite
the backing of the mayor and other civic and police leaders, his
appointment has drawn complaints from young activists who are seeking
changes in how the police respond to protests. And several Council
members have voiced concern that giving Mr. Davis a contract that will
extend past Ms. Rawlings-Blake’s administration will tie the hands of
her successor.
One
of the two members who voted against Mr. Davis’s appointment on Monday,
Carl Stokes, has already declared his candidacy for mayor next year.
The other, Nick J. Mosby, is considering a run.
Ms. Rawlings-Blake said last month that she would not seek re-election in order to focus her attention on turning the city around, rather than on a campaign.
Community
activists contend that since Mr. Davis took control of the department,
the police have displayed “heightened aggression” toward protesters. A
coalition of activist groups has produced a list of 19 demands they want
Ms. Rawlings-Blake and Mr. Davis to enact. The commissioner met with
some of those activists on Sunday, according to the department’s
director of media relations.
Last
week, the police arrested 16 protesters who refused to leave City Hall
after a Council committee gave Mr. Davis an initial nod of approval.
Before
Monday’s meeting, the city pre-emptively closed an observation gallery
overlooking the chamber, where many of the protesters camped last week.
Still,
a dozen or so were in the chamber and interrupted the proceedings after
the vote on Mr. Davis. They chanted and demanded that their voices be
heard before the police escorted them out. No arrests were made in City
Hall.
Protesters
from within the chamber joined with several dozen who had been watching
in an overflow room within City Hall. After leaving the building, the
group marched to the Inner Harbor area, disrupting rush-hour traffic.
Leaders of the group said they would continue to pressure Mr. Davis.
Ms.
Rawlings-Blake has proposed paying the commissioner $200,000 annually
through June 2020, and the contract includes a $150,000 severance
package should her successor decide to replace him.
In
what is expected to be a formality, the Board of Estimates, which Ms.
Rawlings-Blake controls, will need to approve the contract on Wednesday.
Source: NY Times
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