Trust Says Baltimore Lacked Authority To Remove Monuments

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BALTIMORE (WJZ)-- The Maryland Historical Trust says Baltimore's removal of four statues, three being Confederate monuments, two months ago was illegal.

The State agency says it could order the City to put the monuments back, but it doesn't plan to. Trustees do, however, want a say in where they go next.

In August, Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh ordered the removal of four monuments overnight before activists had the chance to do it themselves.

The Maryland Historical Trust says the sudden take down wasn't Pugh's call to make.

An 1984 contract between the State and the City gave the trust any final say on changes made to the monuments.

In a letter to city leaders last week, the director of the trust wrote:

"We believe, on advice of counsel, that public safety concerns did not relieve the City of its legal obligations under the easement."

Mayor Pugh disagrees.

"The monuments have since been tarped and stored, hidden away until their next home is found," Pugh said.

Something the mayor believes the City and trust can work on.

In the letter, the trust also asked the City to move the monuments within nine months. The letter shows that three of the four monuments fall under the easement.

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