BALTIMORE (AP) - Baltimore’s top prosecutor has dismissed nearly 600 open warrants for minor offenses as part of efforts to reduce the number of people entering jails amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced Thursday that drug possession, paraphernalia possession, prostitution, trespassing and minor traffic offenses, among other lower-level crimes, would all be dismissed.
The announcement comes about three months after Mosby ordered her staff to stop prosecuting such cases in an action aimed at reducing the threat of coronavirus outbreaks in jails and prisons, The Baltimore Sun reported at the time.
Despite the order, some people were still being arrested on open warrants for failing to appear in court on offenses that the office no longer intended to prosecute, Mosby’s office said.
Prosecutors gathered the affected warrants, requested hearings, then dismissed the underlying charges, according to Mosby.
Burglary, theft, drug sales and serious traffic offenses can still be prosecuted, her office said.
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