Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is facing a lawsuit after he allegedly hampered an independent watchdog’s investigation into fraud, waste, and abuse in a government program.
Baltimore Inspector General Isabel Mercedes Cumming filed a 43-page lawsuit in Baltimore City Circuit Court alleging that the city restricted her access to documents that were essential to her investigation into the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE), according to CBS News Baltimore.
Mayor Scott created the agency to employ a “public health” approach to public safety. The office focuses on gun violence reduction, trauma, and healing in partnership with community groups and other agencies. The city said MONSE “works with people, groups, and business to make Baltimore’s neighborhoods safer.”
The lawsuit requests a court order affirming the inspector general’s independence, subpoena power and direct access to city records under the Baltimore City Charter. It also asks the court to block any further interference with the investigation after the city refused to comply with a subpoena.
Baltimore IG @isabel_cumming is suing the city after being blocked access to records she says she needs to do her job.@MayorBMScott's admin has said its restrictions were following advice from the state AG's office.
— Dennis Valera (@dennisreports) February 24, 2026
Prev. reporting from @HellgrenWJZ: https://t.co/ILlTM0Rz0C pic.twitter.com/tXjh0OxEex
Cumming said her objective is to “require the city to do what it has done since I took office — provide the OIG with the information it needs to ensure taxpayer dollars aren’t being wasted by government officials.”
The dispute began when Cumming subpoenaed unredacted records from MONSE. Instead, the city treated it as a public information request and sent redacted documents. Cummings noted that “almost everything” was blacked out, making it impossible for her team to “follow the money.”
Mayor Scott’s legal team then adopted a new position in which it mandated that even subpoena-backed requests from the inspector general should be handled under the Maryland Public Information Act, which allows the city to conceal personnel information and financial details from disclosure, WBFF reported.
The lawsuit says the city’s actions have “hampered the OIG’s ability to monitor its confidential investigative database” by disallowing access to systems that track those who view sensitive whistleblower complaints and internal files.
The mayor defended the restrictions, arguing that an account linked to the inspector general had gained “unapproved and unfettered access” to attorneys’ confidential work. He said the OIG must comply with state public-records rules like any other entity requesting information.
In a statement, Scott’s office said, “the Mayor remains committed to transparency and to an OIG that is both effective and complies with the law.”
Cumming repudiated Scott’s remarks, noting that since she took office in 2018, city agencies have always provided her office with unredacted records — until now. She pointed out that more than 100 of her 324 investigations involved information that would now be blacked out under Mayor Scott’s new rules.
This fight comes amid a bevy of embarrassments for Scott’s office. This includes an investigation that found the mayor's office spent more than $890,000 on food, office parties and flowers over a three-year period.”
Baltimore Brew reported that the mayor’s office use procurement cards and other accounts to cover the expenses for crab feasts, game-day catering in stadium suites, birthday parties, employee celebrations, and floral arrangements.
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