The Justice Department's request for a 90-day pause to review the Baltimore consent decree case ahead of Thursday's public hearing has been denied by a federal judge, the Baltimore Sun reports.
The city of Baltimore and the Justice Department in January agreed on the court-enforceable consent decree to institute sweeping reforms in Baltimore's police departments. The decree, which calls for an impartial federal monitor to observe the department and instructs police officers to use de-escalation tactics before resorting to violence, still needs to be approved by a federal judge.
The request to cancel the hearing "at the eleventh hour would be to unduly burden and inconvenience the Court, the other parties, and, most importantly, the public," U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar said Wednesday.
Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh said in a statement the city is "ready to move forward to rebuild the important relationship which exists between the community and our police department.”
"Criminal justice reform is something we must do in our city," she added. "When they hear from the citizens tomorrow, they'll get a flavor of why this is important."
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has ordered all consent decrees nationwide to be reviewed.