BALTIMORE (WBFF) — One of Baltimore City's most controversial government offices is not regularly audited despite the city holding sweeping auditing rights for a controversial anti-violence program housed within the office, according to documents obtained by FOX45 News.
 

The Baltimore City Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) is responsible for administering Safe Streets, an embattled violence prevention program where convicted offenders, dubbed "violence interrupters," are charged with the responsibility of going into neighborhoods and mediating conflicts without police.
 

The structure of the Safe Streets program is unique. Rather than employing the violence interrupters directly, MONSE contracts with non-profit organizations to manage day-to-day Safe Streets operations. That means information normally available to the public, such as the names of Safe Streets employees, is hidden despite their salaries being supported by taxpayer dollars.
 

FOX45 News has repeatedly filed Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA) requests for documents including the names of Safe Streets employees. Each time, Baltimore City has redacted those names, often citing the fact that the employees in question do not technically work for the city.
 

The individuals whose identities are redacted ... are not public employees as provided in these contracts," a Baltimore City government attorney told FOX45 News in August.

Meanwhile, some Baltimore City officials have, both in public and behind the scenes, expressed frustration over the lack of transparency surrounding MONSE and Safe Streets. A July Baltimore City Council hearing turned tense after several council members outlined their concerns over what's happening both inside MONSE and specifically within Safe Streets.
 

"I have deepening concerns about the expansion and growth of MONSE," Councilman Eric Costello said at the time.

The public outcry came shortly after FOX45 News made several significant discoveries about the Safe Streets program. In a witness interview obtained by FOX45 News, one former Safe Streets employee told detectives employees would regularly hold meetings at restaurants instead of going to their Safe Streets site. The former employee told detectives they were "told how to clock in from [their] phone without actually having to go to work."
 

FOX45 News also dug deeper into the case of Ronald Alexander, a former Safe Streets worker who allegedly tried to use his position with Safe Streets to escape a traffic stop. Federal prosecutors said Alexander "used his affiliation with Safe Streets and the Baltimore City Mayor’s Office to try to deter further police investigation" when pulled over by a Baltimore police officer.
 

Charging documents included an image of Alexander donning a "Stop Shooting, Start Living" Safe Streets shirt while carrying a bag of drugs. Alexander was eventually convicted on federal charges of conspiracy to distribute drugs. He is currently in federal prison in North Carolina.
 

Another former Safe Streets worker, Vernon Harper, pleaded guilty to possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute late last year. Federal prosecutors said Harper would travel from his home in Pikesville to his Safe Streets neighborhoods, Brooklyn and Curtis Bay, to sell narcotics. Harper's conviction was only made known to FOX45 News through a tip.
 

Outside of the public eye, several Baltimore City officials have told FOX45 News they have significant concerns over the lack of transparency within MONSE. What's unclear at this point is what those officials plan to do to 'open the books' on MONSE and whether Mayor Scott, a champion of both MONSE and Safe Streets, will support those efforts. Mayor Scott's office did not respond to a request for comment from FOX45 News for this story.
 

In reviewing contracts between MONSE and the organizations that administer Safe Streets, FOX45 News discovered Baltimore City has the right to audit Safe Streets organizations. The contracts give the city broad discretion on when and how these audits are conducted. However, MONSE, which houses Safe Streets, is not listed as one of the agencies scheduled for regular auditing by the Baltimore City Department of Audits, which is housed in the office of Baltimore City Comptroller Bill Henry.
 

Adding MONSE to the list of agencies that are regularly audited would require a charter amendment, meaning voters would have to approve the addition at the ballot box in 2024. However, a commission of seven Baltimore City figures, five of whom are elected officials, have the ability to request City Auditor Josh Pasch conduct one-off audits. That commission consists of Councilman Eric Costello, Councilman Yitzy Schleifer, Council President Nick Mosby, Councilman Kristerfer Burnett, Comptroller Bill Henry, Baltimore City Finance Director Michael Moiseyev and Inspector General Isabel Mercedes Cumming.
 

A spokesperson for the Comptroller's Office told FOX45 News Comptroller Bill Henry "has no objection" to adding MONSE to the list of agencies that are regularly audited.
 

"My suggestion would be to replace the Law Department with MONSE," Comptroller Henry told FOX45 News via a spokesperson.
 

Councilman Yitzy Schleifer, who represents northwest Baltimore at City Hall, said he supports auditing MONSE, and is not aware of any previous efforts to do so.
 

Inspector General Isabel Mercedes Cumming and Councilman Eric Costello also told FOX45 News they support an audit of MONSE.
 

"I am in favor of exercising the audit clause in relation to the Safe Streets project," Inspector General Cumming said in a statement.
 

"I support making a request of the City Auditor to conduct a performance audit of MONSE and Safe Streets," Councilman Costello told FOX45 News. "Making changes to the Biennial Audits list would be a long process that, in this instance, would not be necessary."
 

The rest of the commission, including Council President Nick Mosby and Councilman Kristerfer Burnett, did not respond to questions about auditing MONSE.
 

The Baltimore City Department of Audits conducts both performance audits and financial audits. Performance audits inspect an agency's operations to ensure maximum efficiency and effectiveness. Financial audits review spending to make sure an agency is properly spending budgeted funds. Generally, any criminal wrongdoing discovered during an audit would be referred to a law enforcement agency, such as the Office of the Baltimore City State's Attorney or the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland.
 

The pressure on MONSE coincides with significant change at the agency. Former MONSE Executive Director Shantay Jackson abruptly announced her resignation on May 11 with no explanation. The office was then handed to Stefanie Mavronis, a longtime Brandon Scott political staffer, on an interim basis. It is unclear how long Mavronis will remain in that role.
 

During budget hearings in June, Baltimore City Administrator Faith Leach told council members a permanent MONSE director would be named within 60 days. That never happened, and Mavronis has remained services as the de facto leader on an interim basis.

“We are still searching, we have some folks, and we are going to continue to bring in the best and brightest,” Mayor Scott said on October 2 when asked when a permanent director would be named. “Some of the folks we considered took other jobs.”
 

The Scott administration has not indicated whether Mavronis was part of the search or if she applied for the job.
 

Mayor Scott has repeatedly claimed there is transparency surrounding the Safe Streets program. During a community meeting in August, a concerned citizen confronted Mayor Scott and then-Acting Police Commissioner Richard Worley about Safe Streets.
 

"We have to understand that there’s always transparency with these programs. The money that we spend on Safe Streets is out there for the public to see," Mayor Scott said.
 

Mayor Scott did not address the fact that other critical information about Safe Streets, such as the names of the individuals working as violence interrupters and the training provided to violence interrupters before they start working for Safe Streets, is not shared with the public. In contrast, the names of every Baltimore police officer are available for the public to review at any time.
 

Former Mayor Sheila Dixon, who is challenging Mayor Scott in the 2024 mayoral primary election, has long been a supporter of the concept behind Safe Streets, but has grown increasingly critical about the state of the program over the past several months.
 

"I think Safe Streets needs to be investigated," Dixon told FOX45 News during an interview last month. However, at a campaign event shortly after that interview, Dixon said she would not release the names of Safe Streets employees if elected mayor.


Sean Kennedy, a visiting fellow at the Maryland Public Policy Institute, believes MONSE should welcome the opportunity to be audited.
 

"Transparency and openness to criticism are hallmarks of good government. If Safe Streets and MONSE are the astounding success that their proponents say they are, then an independent audit will demonstrate their value for Baltimore taxpayers," Kennedy told FOX45 News.
 

Mikenzie Frost and Gary Collins contributed to this report.