A coalition of 14 community groups sent a letter to Mayor Catherine Pugh asking her to direct the police department to stop making low-level cannabis arrests, nearly a month after State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced her office would no longer prosecute such cases.

In the letter, the groups wrote that as the city battles rampant violence, Mosby’s decision offers “the only sensible path toward securing public safety and restoring faith in law enforcement.

“But that path is meaningless so long as the police insist on arresting and incarcerating for reasons that have nothing to do with public safety. We need strong leadership from you to make clear that our jails should be used to keep our community safe.”

The groups, spanning organizations that represent clergy, advocates for harm reduction and other social justice causes, wrote they want a response by March 8. Mayor Pugh’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Baltimore Fishbowl.

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