- Baltimore police officers used a helicopter to demand people exit a public pool after it had closed.
- A city council member called the practice "totally excessive."
- The city's park district said there's been an "uptick" in misconduct at the pools.
The Baltimore Police Department used a police helicopter and a booming speaker to order swimmers to exit a closed public pool in an incident one city council member called "totally excessive."
"This is the Baltimore Police Department helicopter unit," an officer can be heard saying from a helicopter in a video shared on Twitter Thursday by a WBFF photojournalist. "For your safety, exit the swimming pool. There is no lifeguard on duty."
Baltimore city council member Zeke Cohen said on Twitter he's "repeatedly" asked the police department to stop using the helicopter to "chase away kids at the pool."
"While I do worry about the safety of children swimming at night without a lifeguard, this ain't it. Totally excessive," Cohen wrote in a tweet.
—#FreeBrittneyGriner (@phriendlyphotog) July 1, 2022
Cohen didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
In a statement to Insider, the Baltimore Police Department said checking the pools with the helicopter is a routine practice to "prevent unattended drowning."
The department said that when the video was taken, officers spotted 20 people in one of the pools after it had closed and staff had gone home.
"Officers informed the individuals that there were no lifeguards on duty and for their safety ordered the individuals to exit the pool," the department said.
The Baltimore Park District said in its own statement that the incident comes during an "uptick" in misconduct at the pools, "including threats to staff, vandalism, and an overall disregard for pool rules."