Profile in Cowardice: Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott

Charm City has a not-so-charming track record on corruption. Baltimore is among the most corrupt cities in the country, having seen a notable string of high-profile public corruption convictions over the last two decades. From former Mayor Catherine Pugh, who was sentenced to federal prison for tax evasion and conspiracy regarding her children’s book scam, to former Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, who was convicted on federal charges of perjury and mortgage fraud, Baltimore has trouble attracting honest and competent leadership. Instead of working with watchdogs such as Inspector General (IG) Isabel Cumming to root out corruption, Mayor Brandon Scott has tried to shut down the IG’s access to information. Fortunately, Baltimore City Judge Pamela White largely rejected these attempts and ordered the city to restore access. For fighting tooth and nail against transparency and accountability, Mayor Scott is a Profile in Cowardice.

Audits and investigations in recent years by Baltimore City’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) have exposed serious fiscal mismanagement, compliance lapses, and disputes over independent oversight. A 2026 OIG investigation found that 15 executive-level municipal employees received more than $312,000 while on permission leave or extended separations, including five Mayor’s Office employees who received $147,265 after their last actual day of work. One mayoral employee received approximately $62,000 for 89 workdays after ceasing work. A February 2026 report exposed more than $52,000 in expenditures by the Mayor’s office in a luxury suite at Orioles and Ravens games. Separately, an OIG investigation of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) identified evidence of fraudulent invoicing, inadequate recordkeeping, and serious data-management failures in its SideStep youth diversion program.

One might think that Mayor Scott would be mortified by continued corruption and inadequate oversight and lean heavily on the IG to reverse course. The exact opposite has happened. In early 2026, Mayor Scott’s administration restricted the OIG’s direct access to city databases and records, sparking a major dispute with IG Cumming. City Solicitor Ebony M. Thompson cited an advice letter from the Maryland Attorney General’s Office to argue that unrestricted access to protected records—including medical information, personnel files, and attorney-client communications—could violate confidentiality requirements under the Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA). Mayor Scott mischaracterized this letter as an official opinion from the AG. Using this faux opinion as justification, the administration revoked certain OIG administrative permissions to city systems and imposed additional legal review and restrictions on access to records—making it nearly impossible for the OIG to carry out its mission of identifying waste, fraud, abuse, and corruption in Baltimore.

Cumming challenged the restrictions, rightly arguing that the Baltimore City Charter guarantees her office independent access to information necessary to investigate fraud, waste, and abuse without interference from the officials being investigated. The dispute escalated into litigation, culminating in a ruling by Judge White ordering the administration to restore the OIG’s access to municipal systems and comply with outstanding subpoenas. The judge rejected the administration’s broad reliance on the MPIA to restrict OIG investigations and found that the city had engaged in a pattern of obstructing the watchdog’s access to information.

Rather than immediately accepting the ruling, the Scott administration pursued appeals and emergency motions seeking to delay compliance, perversely arguing that unrestricted access threatened legally protected information. Courts repeatedly rejected the administration’s efforts to block or delay access, and on October 1, Cumming confirmed that her office had regained access to city systems. The prolonged legal confrontation drew criticism from oversight advocates and watchdogs such as the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, who have rightly pointed out that the administration’s legal games and repeated appeals are little more than attempts to undermine independent accountability and transparency.

Rather than trying to fight the free flow of information, Mayor Scott should quit while he is behind and work with IG Cumming to make the Baltimore city government more transparent and accountable. Only a Profile in Cowardice would fight this hard to keep the truth from getting out.