Former Baltimore police officer comes clean about corruption on force

Former Baltimore police sergeant Michael Wood is speaking out about the corruption in the police force on Twitter.

Wood, who had previously spoken out in a radio interview, took to Twitter to give some examples of the corruption he saw in his eleven years on the force.

His tweets gained traction for their bold admissions that officers lied to get overtime, illegally searched “thousands of people” and committed gross acts during raids, like urinating and defecating on suspects’ beds.

https://twitter.com/MichaelAWoodJr/status/613723501116190720

He writes,

So here we go. I’m going to start Tweeting the things I’ve seen & participated in, in policing that is corrupt, intentional or not… A detective slapping a completely innocent female in the face for bumping into him, coming out of a corner chicken store…. Punting a handcuffed, face down, suspect in the face, after a foot chase. My handcuffs, not my boot or suspect…. CCTV cameras turning as soon as a suspect is close to caught…. Pissing and sh***ing inside suspects homes during raids, on their beds and clothes…. Jacking up and illegally searching thousands of people with no legal justification…. Having other people write PC statements, who were never there because they could twist it into legality…. Summonsing officers who weren’t there so they could collect the overtime…. Targeting 16-24 year old black males essentially because we arrest them more, perpetrating the circle of arresting them more.

On Thursday, a spokesperson for the Baltimore Police Department released the following statement in response:

The recent allegations made by Mr. Michael Wood are serious and very troubling. The Police Commissioner has made clear that the Baltimore Police Department will never tolerate malicious conduct. We hope that during his time as both a sworn member and as a sergeant with supervisory obligations, that Mr. Wood reported these disturbing allegations at the time of their occurrence. If he did not, we strongly encourage him to do so now, so that our Internal Affairs Division can begin an immediate investigation. In a recently published letter to the Baltimore Sun, the Police Commissioner made clear that his reform efforts remain focused on rooting out the type of conduct that is alleged. We implore Mr. Wood or anyone else with knowledge of such acts to contact our Internal Affairs Division at 410-396-2300.

After Freddie Gray death inspired thousands in Baltimore to protested against police brutality, Wood told the Secular News Network in May that the “BPD started the riots.”

Wood, believes Gray’s death clearly showed that officers treat black and white people differently.

“The officers don’t see it as being so egregious, because people like Freddie Gray are so ingrained as ‘thems,'” he said. Officers said they arrested Gray for carrying a switchblade, but the city’s chief prosecutor, Marilyn Mosby, ruled the knife was a legal.

“Even if the police feel as though they did nothing wrong. How many residents were arrested in the white neighborhoods with spring-assisted pocket knives?” Wood said to SNN. “I have a suspicion that the number is right around zero.”

Wood has received support from many black activists who believe more officers need to come forward with what they’ve seen. He is also a vocal supporter of the #BlackLivesMatter movement.