An independent legal opinion concurs with Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates’ decision to sever ties with Mayor Brandon Scott’s flagship anti-violence initiative, concluding that prosecutors and defense attorneys should now review cases to determine whether they were compromised by a failure to disclose required information.

The opinion by former state bar counsel Lydia Lawless was commissioned by Bates and released Thursday morning. Lawless wrote that prosecutors are required to disclose information such as services provided to witnesses and victims, and did not believe they were receiving “complete and timely” information from the city.

If the the prosecutors’ office “is not confident that it is complying with its disclosure obligations, it should, in the interest of protecting the integrity of its prosecutions and defendants’ Constitutional rights, end its formal partnership with” the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, or MONSE, Lawless wrote.

Scott’s office slammed the opinion, calling it “an extension of the State’s Attorney’s politically motivated and pre-determined desire to end partnership with MONSE.” The mayor’s statement also criticized the legal opinion commissioned by Bates for relying on one-sided information and hypothetical concerns that haven’t been grounded in actual examples.

“We maintain that MONSE has always made good faith efforts to meet all requests for information from the SAO,” the mayor’s office said, adding that they have engaged their own outside counsel for an analysis.

The legal analysis landed about six weeks after Bates told Scott in a letter that he was concerned about a “veil of secrecy” involving MONSE.

At the time, Bates said he was not receiving sufficient information from MONSE that his prosecutors would be required to disclose in court, such as whether crime victims and witnesses are receiving financial support from the city.

Bates said his office would continue to prosecute cases brought by Baltimore Police through the program, as required by law. But he said his office would “no longer directly coordinate with MONSE” with the framework of that strategy.

In an interview, Lawless said it’s unclear how many cases may be affected by the lack of disclosures.

“That’s part of the problem,” she said. “Maybe it’s a couple; maybe it’s hundreds, or a thousand.

“The state’s attorney does not know how many of the state’s witnesses received a copy of that letter from the mayor,” she added. “And they do not know how many victims or witnesses received services from MONSE related to a case charged or uncharged.”

The Maryland Office of the Public Defender did not immediately comment.

The mayor’s office described Lawless’ findings as biased.

“The author directly admits in the opening of the report that it assumes the SAO’s premise to be true, despite the fact that the State’s Attorney’s Office has relied purely on a hypothetical concern that cases may be endangered and, despite repeated requests, has failed to identify any actual instance of where that has happened,” the office said in a statement.

The city has celebrated historic reductions in violent crime in recent years, but with that has come tension between the mayor and the city’s top prosecutor. Bates has repeatedly expressed frustration that his office was not being recognized enough for its role, and has sought to minimize the impact of the Group Violence Reduction Strategy, or GVRS, Scott’s hallmark program.

But the break-up over MONSE, Bates said, boils down to prosecutors believing there is critical information being withheld and which they are required to disclose to defense attorneys.

The GVRS program involves police identifying people they believe are involved in violence or at risk for becoming victims. They receive a letter from Scott warning them that they are on law enforcement’s radar, and offering them services to change their trajectory, or face prosecution.

The letter and any services provided constitute exculpatory and impeachment material that prosecutors must disclose to the defense, Lawless said. And the burden is on prosecutors to collect the information.

“This opinion and associated recommendations are not intended, in any way, to disparage or undermine the good work that MONSE is doing,” Lawless concluded. “The burden the SAO carries is heavy and belongs to the state — not MONSE — and it is the state’s obligation to take appropriate remedial action.”

Banner reporter Emily Opilo contributed to this report.