Rapper to Receive Six-Figure Settlement After Cop Allegedly Planted Drugs on Him

Rapper Young Moose will receive a six-figure settlement after a court agreed that Baltimore City police officers planted drugs on him. ABC News reports that a court settlement is forcing the city of Baltimore to pay $300,000 to resolve Moose’s claims. The agreement was reached on May 10, 2022. The judgment comes following the city having to pay out more than $10 million in settlement following a task force being uncovered as corrupt. 

Moose, real name Kevron Evans, sued several Baltimore police officers, including a former detective, Daniel Hersl, who served on the infamous Gun Trace Task Force. Hersl is currently serving 18 years in federal prison after being convicted in 2018 of charges stemming from a corruption investigation of the task force. He was accused of stealing money before and after he joined the task force and he’s now a subject of the HBO crime drama We Own This City. Actor Josh Charles stars as Hersl. The series is directed and stars many of the same cast as the iconic HBO series The Wire, which was also based on occurrences in Baltimore, MD.

Evans’ lawsuit accuses officers of applying for warrants based on false allegations and illegally arresting him in the process. As a result, he claims the constant harassment from police robbed him of lucrative career opportunities in music and tarnished his reputation. His arrest came right before he was scheduled for a performance at the Royal Farms Arena in the city.

Evans’ conviction was vacated in 2020 during the review of hundreds of cases involving the convicted and disgraced Gun Trace Task Force officers. Per NBC Baltimore, his settlement includes legal fees the city paid to defend Hersl. 

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said the latest settlement makes it clear that policing in Baltimore has to continue to reform. “This is a very critical moment for us that we understand that some of the former policing tactics, and the ignoring and focusing in on moving and touching anybody Black and brown in our city, can never be done again,” Scott said.