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State's Attorney drops charges against former Safe Streets worker

Albert Brown was arrested by indicted officers
Posted at 6:29 PM, Mar 06, 2017
and last updated 2017-03-06 18:29:33-05

When detective Daniel Hersl's body work footage starts, Albert Brown is already in handcuffs.

Despite BPD policy, no video was recording during the previous search or detainment at the BP gas station on Reisterstown Road, but still the officers say they found cocaine and a gun in the visor of Brown's van.

RELATED: Case charged by indicted Baltimore Police officers dismissed

After arresting Brown the officers drive down the road and stop again.

Hersl jumps out and approached Detective Taylor thinking the camera is off.

"It's off, it's off,” you can hear Hersl say.

“Oh okay,” Detective Taylor says, “I ain't wanna, I was gonna hurt that dude. Haha. They got too many cameras."

Nobody did hurt Brown but the recording continues as the officers then go to Brown's house and search the home, without a warrant he says.

The video finally ends with Hersl trying to call up the body camera video for Taylor and realizing, it was rolling the whole time.

"Oh...it's still recording?” you can hear Hersl say as he taps the camera.

"I know the behavior that I saw in this particular case and it was shocking," said defense attorney Ivan Bates.

Bates represents Albert Brown and says not starting the body camera, a search without a warrant and he thinks the planting of evidence all makes the case his client indefensible.

The state dropped its August charges against Brown in a hearing Monday morning, but with the body worn camera video in prosecutor’s hands since last summer, Bates says they should have dropped the charges long before last week's indictments.

"Ms. Mosby's office is the one who brings the charges. The officers may have made the arrests, but Ms. Mosby's office is the one. If you do not stop this type of behavior, then it will fester. You have to get rid of the cancer immediately. This type of behavior stops the system from working," Bates said.

As for Brown, while he is glad this is behind him he feels it should never have happened.

"I am happy to just get my life back together and take care of my family, that's my main issue is to try and take care of my family again….I shouldn't have had to go through this at all. I lost mostly everything. I was trying to buy a house. I lost wages, I couldn't take care of my family or nothing. After this incident happened...it just ruined my life," Brown said.

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