Writers LIVE! Justin Fenton, We Own This City

Enoch Pratt Free Library Podcast

Presented in partnership with AARP Maryland.

Justin Fenton is in conversation with Clarence Davis about his book, We Own This City: A True Story of Crime, Cops, and Corruption.

In this urgent book, award-winning investigative journalist Justin Fenton distills hundreds of interviews, thousands of court documents, and countless hours of video footage to present the definitive account of the entire scandal of the Gun Trace Task Force. The result is an astounding, riveting feat of reportage about a rogue police unit, the city they held hostage, and the ongoing struggle between American law enforcement and the communities they are charged to serve.

Justin Fenton has been a reporter at the Baltimore Sun since 2005, covering crime and the justice system for the past 13 years. He was part of the Pulitzer-finalist team that covered the death of Freddie Gray and was twice named a finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists, for his coverage of rapes that were being discounted by police and a series inside a homicide investigation. "We Own This City" is his first book, and is the basis for a forthcoming HBO miniseries. He is a graduate of the University of Maryland.

Clarence Davis, affectionately known as “Tiger”, has served his community in many different capacities. He is a former Post Commander of Otha Spriggs Memorial American Legion Post, a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Black Vets of All Wars, Vietnam Veterans of America, and he founded the African American Patriots Consortium, which promotes and celebrates the history of African-Americans in defense of the Nation.

Professionally, Davis has served veterans as Director of Veterans Affairs at Catonsville Community College and as Director of the Mondawmin Vet Center. Additionally, he served on the National Faculty of the VA’s Outreach Program. Davis was an Associate Professor of History at Essex Community College from 1986-96 and is retired from a faculty/lecturer position in history at Morgan State University. As with his service to veterans, he has received many awards for excellence and his dedication to people.

In November 1982, Davis was elected to the House of Delegates of the Maryland General Assembly where he held several leadership positions prior to his retirement in December 2006. Lastly, Tiger served in the capacity of AARP Maryland State President from 2012 until 2017.

Writers LIVE programs are supported in part by a bequest from The Miss Howard Hubbard Adult Programming Fund.

Recorded On: Thursday, May 20, 2021