Amid an unprecedented reduction in homicides, Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates said he would “terminate” his coordination with the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, which oversees the city’s flagship anti-violence initiative.

Bates outlined numerous complaints about the office, known as MONSE, and programs it funds, which he said operate behind a “veil of secrecy,” according to a seven-page letter sent to Mayor Brandon Scott Tuesday and obtained by The Banner. Bates wrote that, in light of “recent events and reports,” it was clear MONSE does not share his values of integrity and transparency.

In his letter, Bates said he would continue to prosecute cases brought by Baltimore Police as required by law, including cases designated by MONSE as being part of the Group Violence Reduction Strategy, Scott’s hallmark program. But, the state’s attorney’s office will “no longer directly coordinate with MONSE” within the framework of the strategy, he said.

It’s unclear what the changes will look like.

Bates said the decision would not impact public safety because he’ll continue to prosecute cases regardless of whether or not they are affiliated with Scott’s program.

Tracy King, a spokeswoman for Scott, said the mayor is “significantly distressed by this absurd approach.” King stopped short of saying the dissolution of the relationship with MONSE would jeopardize public safety.

“We remain deeply committed to the partnerships across the city that have driven our unprecedented violence reduction, especially our partnership with the State’s Attorney Office. Any departure from that commitment to partnership is a distraction from the most important thing: saving lives and driving down violence.”

Better known as GVRS, the strategy rolled out in 2022 on a pilot basis with success and later expanded to other parts of the city. It involves targeting people most at risk of becoming a shooter or being shot and offers them services as an alternative to prosecution. Earlier attempts at a similar strategy in the late ’90s and in 2014 were short-lived. Officials faulted a lack of buy-in from partners.

Bates said he would not be using $80,000 MONSE allocated to his office for work on GVRS.

“This office cannot maintain a direct association with an organization such as MONSE that has a reputation for deceptive practices, that continues to operate under a cloak of secrecy and continues to disregard the rights of the most important element of public safety, the victims,” Bates wrote.

Bates offered to create a task force including representatives from his office, Baltimore Police, the Office of the Inspector General and the city solicitor’s office to work through his concerns.

“Suing each other to try to work together is not a solution that would benefit anyone,” he wrote.

The letter is the latest volley in an ongoing dispute between Bates and the mayor amid a multiyear reduction in homicides and violent crime — one of the most significant declines of any city in the country.

Murders, which topped 300 annually for nearly a decade, have dropped 60% since 2021. There have been 127 homicides so far this year, a 30% decline from the same time last year. That comes on the heels of more than 20% reductions each of the previous two years.

Scott credits GVRS for public safety improvements, as well as Baltimore Police, MONSE, and federal and state partners. But Bates has argued GVRS and other MONSE programs like Safe Streets are ineffective, assertions that have repeatedly prompted sharp responses from Scott.

Bates’s concerns about MONSE and its funding recipients have amplified recently as the 2026 election approaches. The Democrat and former defense attorney, elected state’s attorney in 2022, has said he will seek a second term.

Reached by phone Tuesday, Bates said he hoped his letter would spur the creation of a task force “so that MONSE would understand the legal ramifications of some of its actions.”

Asked if he had further comment, Bates said he had wished the letter would have remained private, but that it “speaks for itself.”

”As a lawyer I have an ethical duty to this office and the residents of Baltimore City,” he added.

Part of Bates’ displeasure with MONSE is centered on its programming for victims of crime and witnesses to crimes. While it’s common for those parties to receive some sort of assistance in the run-up to a trial — relocation for safety, help paying bills in the event someone can’t work — Bates argued in his letter that MONSE was providing services without coordinating with his office.

“We are frequently unaware that assistance has been provided, which can lead to complication, particularly in legal proceedings where undisclosed support may be revealed unexpectedly on the witness stand,” Bates wrote. “This could cause long-term detriment to the integrity of the cases and convictions as conviction for violent offenses could be overturned for discovery violations.”

Prosecutors have to disclose evidence that could be exculpatory, and a defense attorney may argue that benefits for a witness or victim could be seen as inducements for favorable testimony.

The state’s attorney also took issue with a program meant to divert youth offenders out of the criminal justice system. Participants in the program, known as SideStep, sometimes received payment from nonprofits the city funded — which Bates has argued amount to effectively paying them not to commit future offenses. Bates said the city would not provide a list of program participants to his office, which in turn prevented his office from fulfilling its “constitutional duty to victims of crime.”

“This is troubling because MONSE is not a law enforcement entity and lacks the checks and balances that guide police and prosecutors every day in their work.”

Bates also took issue with the program’s efficacy, citing a report from the city inspector general that showed participants reoffended more often than the city had stated.

Andrew Levy, a partner at the Brown, Goldstein and Levy firm, acknowledged that Bates may have political motives for his letter, but said his complaints were not without genuine legal concern.

“I don’t find it a frivolous position to take,” Levy said. “Whether his elbows are a little too sharp, as they say, I don’t know.”

King, Scott’s spokeswoman, said Bates’ letter omits “crucial context.”

In the first paragraph, Bates said Scott rebuffed several requests to meet to discuss his concerns about MONSE this summer and again last month. Emails obtained by The Banner via a public information request show MONSE’s director Stefanie Mavronis repeatedly attempted to meet with Bates and his staff in July and August without success.