Betrayers in Blue
IN THE DECADE IT WAS ACTIVE, the Baltimore Police Department’s Gun Trace Task Force (GTTF) did a lot of damage. The plain-clothes unit was marred by corruption and in 2017, after a two-year federal investigation, Sergeant Wayne Jenkins, the GTTF’s leader, and seven other members, were arrested and charged with racketeering. All eight were subsequently convicted.
The investigation revealed the cops had stolen money, planted evidence, and even re-sold drugs on the streets, all in the name of reducing the murder rate in the city. Their actions are the subject of HBO’s 6-episode limited series We Own This City, which premiered Monday, April 25.
Developed and written by David Simon and George Pelecanos, and directed by s Reinaldo Marcus Jon Bernthal. The show is based on the book by reporter Justin Fenton.
