Society always tells the wrongdoers among us that they need to change their ways and contribute to their communities rather than tear them down and kill one another over dumb stuff. So now they are taking a step in the right direction. That’s how deep things are right now in Baltimore.

Meanwhile, the Baltimore PD does not think this is a good idea. The police department recently tweeted on what it views as a “credible threat to law enforcement,” along with a link to a press release on Baltimore Police Department stationery. The memo reads that the “Baltimore Police Department / Criminal Intelligence Unit has received credible information that members of various gangs including the Black Guerilla Family, Bloods, and Crips have entered into a partnership to “take-out” law enforcement officers. This is a credible threat. Law enforcement agencies should take appropriate precautions to ensure the safety of the officers.”

But wait a minute, something does not pass the smell test. How did news of a gang truce in The Daily Beast morph into a police press release about a gang plot to kill cops? This sounds a lot like NYPD reports that the Black Guerilla Family—a Baltimore-based prison gang with a presence in New York—was targeting two Brooklyn precincts following the execution-style shooting of Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos, two of New York’s finest in December of last year.

Late Monday night, gang members in Baltimore told WBAL reporter Deborah Weiner there was no truce made to “harm cops.” One of the men said plainly to Weiner: “We’re not about to allow ya’ll to paint that picture of us […] We want justice for Freddie Gray. We believe in that.” (full interview here)