Donald Trump and maga Repubicans illegally use the National Guard to upstage law enforcement rather than support resources to help public safety
Echo opinion letter published in the Baltimore Sun newspaper, in Maryland:
Donald Trump made his clearest signal yet that signal yet that Baltimoree could be one of the next targets of his campaign against blue cities, warning that he is prepared to deploy federal law enforcement and National Guard troops under the guise of fighting crime. As someone who spent more than two decades in law enforcement, I share the president’s concern for public safety.
Nevertheless, I also know from experience that Trump's (IMO "over reach") show-of-force approach is the wrong path, which risks fracturing public trust and making the city less safe in the long run. Now, the administration appears poised to bring its failed public safety playbook to Baltimore, Maryland.
Apparently unfazed by a recent federal court ruling finding that Trump acted illegally when he dispatched National Guard troops and Marines to Los Angeles this summer, federal agents and military personnel could soon flood into the city. History shows these deployments rarely reduce crime in the long term. They do, however, deepen divides between police and the communities they serve, casting law enforcement as an adversary rather than a partner and weakening the cooperation officers rely on to prevent and solve crime. In this environment, victims and witnesses become less likely to report offenses or assist investigations, making our job exponentially harder. This is not abstract theory. As a retired police major, I saw firsthand how fragile public trust can be, and how essential it is for effective crime prevention and deterrence. When law enforcement is perceived as an illegitimate or oppositional force, the public turns away. This is especially problematic in immigrant communities, where the separation between local police and federal immigration authorities may soon become less clear across Baltimore. As trust erodes, offenders exploit the resulting silence, leaving police with fewer tools to identify, investigate and deter crime. And this compromises safety for everyone.
The Trumpzi administration’s recent incursions into local policing also raise a troubling contradiction. Earlier this year, federal officials ended consent decrees with local departments, insisting Washington had no business dictating how cities run their agencies. Yet now, the same administration is directly interfering in local policing when it is politically convenient. This willingness to override democratically enacted policies sets a dangerous precedent that will almost certainly extend beyond Baltimore.
The frustration is compounded by the administration’s decision to dismantle federal grants for community-based strategies proven to reduce violence, including violence interruption programs, mental health crisis response, youth outreach and other supportive services. These efforts may lack the political punch of a city takeover, but in Baltimore and elsewhere, the evidence shows they save lives, reduce violence and strengthen the social fabric that prevents crime in the first place. The impulse to project strength in the face of crime is not imposed with an iron fist. Rather, it is earned through the consent of the governed, built on trust, and sustained through accountability. If the administration is serious about safety in Baltimore, it should support the city’s leaders, invest in proven community partnerships and provide police with the resources they need to build relationships — not tear them down.
The Trumpzi administration’s recent incursions into local policing also raise a troubling contradiction. Earlier this year, federal officials ended consent decrees with local departments, insisting Washington had no business dictating how cities run their agencies. Yet now, the same administration is directly interfering in local policing when it is politically convenient. This willingness to override democratically enacted policies sets a dangerous precedent that will almost certainly extend beyond Baltimore.
The frustration is compounded by the administration’s decision to dismantle federal grants for community-based strategies proven to reduce violence, including violence interruption programs, mental health crisis response, youth outreach and other supportive services. These efforts may lack the political punch of a city takeover, but in Baltimore and elsewhere, the evidence shows they save lives, reduce violence and strengthen the social fabric that prevents crime in the first place. The impulse to project strength in the face of crime is not imposed with an iron fist. Rather, it is earned through the consent of the governed, built on trust, and sustained through accountability. If the administration is serious about safety in Baltimore, it should support the city’s leaders, invest in proven community partnerships and provide police with the resources they need to build relationships — not tear them down.
Trump's threats now aimed at Baltimore are about more than one city. They reflect a broader politicization of public safety, which emphasizes rhetoric over evidence and props up a vision of policing that demands compliance through intimidation, rather than earning respect through integrity. If we continue down this path, the damage to our democracy — and to the legitimacy of law enforcement — will long outlast the current administration.
From Neill Franklin, a retired 34-year law enforcement veteran of the Maryland State Police and Baltimore Police Department. He was recruited in 2000 by the commissioner of the Baltimore Police Department to reconstruct and command Baltimore’s Education and Training Section. During his time with the Maryland State Police, he held the position of commander for the Education and Training Division and the Bureau of Drug and Criminal Enforcement. After 10 years of leadership, Franklin retired as executive director of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership in 2020.
The frustration is compounded by the administration’s decision to dismantle federal grants for community-based strategies proven to reduce violence, including violence interruption programs, mental health crisis response, youth outreach and other supportive services. These efforts may lack the political punch of a city takeover, but in Baltimore and elsewhere, the evidence shows they save lives, reduce violence and strengthen the social fabric that prevents crime in the first place. I understand the impulse to project strength in the face of crime. But real strength is not imposed with an iron fist. It is earned through the consent of the governed, built on trust, and sustained through accountability. If the administration is serious about safety in Baltimore, it should support the city’s leaders, invest in proven community partnerships and provide police with the resources they need to build relationships — not tear them down.
The threats now aimed at Baltimore are about more than one city. They reflect a broader politicization of public safety, which emphasizes rhetoric over evidence and props up a vision of policing that demands compliance through intimidation, rather than earning respect through integrity. If we continue down this path, the damage to our democracy — and to the legitimacy of law enforcement — will long outlast the current administration.
Neill Franklin is a retired 34-year law enforcement veteran of the Maryland State Police and Baltimore Police Department. He was recruited in 2000 by the commissioner of the Baltimore Police Department to reconstruct and command Baltimore’s Education and Training Section. During his time with the Maryland State Police, he held the position of commander for the Education and Training Division and the Bureau of Drug and Criminal Enforcement. After 10 years of leadership, Franklin retired as executive director of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership in 2020.
The frustration is compounded by the administration’s decision to dismantle federal grants for community-based strategies proven to reduce violence, including violence interruption programs, mental health crisis response, youth outreach and other supportive services. These efforts may lack the political punch of a city takeover, but in Baltimore and elsewhere, the evidence shows they save lives, reduce violence and strengthen the social fabric that prevents crime in the first place. I understand the impulse to project strength in the face of crime. But real strength is not imposed with an iron fist. It is earned through the consent of the governed, built on trust, and sustained through accountability. If the administration is serious about safety in Baltimore, it should support the city’s leaders, invest in proven community partnerships and provide police with the resources they need to build relationships — not tear them down.
The threats now aimed at Baltimore are about more than one city. They reflect a broader politicization of public safety, which emphasizes rhetoric over evidence and props up a vision of policing that demands compliance through intimidation, rather than earning respect through integrity. If we continue down this path, the damage to our democracy — and to the legitimacy of law enforcement — will long outlast the current administration.
Neill Franklin is a retired 34-year law enforcement veteran of the Maryland State Police and Baltimore Police Department. He was recruited in 2000 by the commissioner of the Baltimore Police Department to reconstruct and command Baltimore’s Education and Training Section. During his time with the Maryland State Police, he held the position of commander for the Education and Training Division and the Bureau of Drug and Criminal Enforcement. After 10 years of leadership, Franklin retired as executive director of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership in 2020.
Labels: Baltimore, Baltimore Sun, Maryland, Neill Franklin
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