Mayor, City Council President Respond To Juvenile Disturbance At Inner Harbor On Saturday

Baltimore police made six arrests Saturday night in the Inner Harbor after hundreds of juveniles--some of whom were fighting--gathered there.

A large disturbance broke out at the Inner Harbor between Pratt and Light streets around 6:30 p.m., according to Baltimore police.

Additional resources were called to the area to assist and police made six arrests. Police estimated there were between 300 and 500 juveniles gathered at the Inner Harbor when the fights broke out.

Witnesses told WBAL-TV that "hundreds of teens" were seen jumping on cars, hitting other people, "trying to take their belongings," and attempting to break windows.

Six juveniles were arrested for destruction of property and disorderly conduct. Authorities don't identify suspects who are charged as juveniles.

"Really, it's a parenting question. Are the parents talking to their young people to let them know that downtown belongs to you too, the Inner Harbor belongs to you too, but you go there and act with common sense and decency and not go down there to disrupt and fight and create mayhem down at the Inner Harbor. It's just unacceptable," Mayor Bernard C. "Jack" Young said Tuesday. "This kind of behavior is unacceptable, and I'm making no excuses for it. It's unacceptable. But that don't indict everybody who lives in the city of Baltimore. The 99.9 percent of the citizens of Baltimore are law-abiding citizens who want to do the right thing. It's that 1 percent that keeps us held hostage."

City Council President Brandon M. Scott said he has been in contact with police and has asked Commissioner Michael Harrison to allow him to look at body camera and surveillance footage from the scene.

"Keeping people in Baltimore safe, including our young people, has to be our top priority. However, we cannot allow the type of behavior that was displayed to take place," Scott said in a statement. "We must hold those who participate in illegal activity responsible, but everyone who cares about Baltimore must also understand that most of the young people who visit the Harbor are not there to engage in illegal activity. We have to recognize that we must provide opportunities for young people to enjoy themselves safely while simultaneously enforcing the law."

He said he would work with Young, lawmakers and others to provide opportunities and activities for teens to make sure public spaces, the harbor included, are welcoming.

In a statement, the Baltimore City Fraternal Order of Police told officers, in part, "Protect each other and don't fall into the trap that they are only kids. Some are criminals!"

The statement is not sitting well with many on social media, including the ACLU, which is calling the FOP's language unacceptable.

In a statement, the ACLU said, in part, "Comments like this do nothing to repair that trust. Instead, it encourages racial-profiling tactics, excessive force and excuses officers for disregarding the rights of black children."

I’m reporting live from the #InnerHarbor on @wbalradio w/@BryanNehman as @BaltimorePolice are giving us a clearer picture of what happened here over the #MemorialDayWeekend & where they go from here in the future after they responded Saturday night to 300 to 500 teens gathering pic.twitter.com/WVGivJ2kUN — Scott Wykoff (@ScottWykoffWBAL) May 28, 2019

WBAL-TV 11 reporter Theo Hayes contributed to this report.