[Baltimore Sun] Convicted Gun Trace Task Force officer ‘truly sorry’ for actions after ‘soul searching’ and denied early release
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A convicted former Gun Trace Task Force member, after being denied a motion for early release from prison and facing months left to live with a terminal cancer diagnosis, says he is “truly sorry” for the way he and coworkers “acted and treated others” as police.
In an email to his attorney that was included in federal court records, Daniel Hersl, 54, said that he has done “some soul searching” and wanted to “accept full responsibility for my conduct.” In the March 28 email, the former Baltimore Police detective agreed to dismiss pending motions before the court.
“There are things that I’m very proud of that I have accomplished as a police officer in the Baltimore Police Department but unfortunately those accomplishments are overshadowed by my conduct in the G.T.T.F.,” Hersl wrote. “My actions have hurt and affected so many others that put their trust in me and to this day it weighs on my mind.”
Hersl is serving a federal prison sentence for racketeering after a jury found in 2018 that he had used his authority as a police officer to steal thousands of dollars from residents. He and other members of the corrupt task force were convicted for scheming to rob people, deal drugs and steal overtime. He is slated for release in 2031.
Even before the Gun Trace Task Force corruption scandal exploded into public view, Hersl had an outsized reputation for misconduct, racking up Internal Affairs cases for brutality and discourtesy. The police department “largely ignored” the threat he posed, according to a report into the roots of the GTTF scandal, and assigned him to the task force in a “catastrophic institutional failure.”
“Outside of the Department, Hersl’s name became a verb — to be ‘Hersl’ed’ meant to be roughed up by a police officer,” said the report compiled by a team led by former U.S. Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Bromwich.
While in prison, Hersl was diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer. Facing an estimated 18 months to live, Hersl asked in October to be released early from federal prison. That motion and a subsequent appeal were rejected.
A U.S. District Judge ruled in November that, while he was sympathetic to Hersl’s medical condition, the Bureau of Prisons is capable of managing it and allowing him to interact with his family. U.S. District Judge George L. Russell III wrote in his decision that a message “certainly needs to be sent” that those who engage in such a racketeering conspiracy will be held accountable.
“While the Defendant may have received commendations and awards while employed as a police officer these accomplishments pale by comparison when considering the damage the Defendant and his co-conspirators inflicted on the institutional reputation of the Baltimore City Police Department and the citizens it serves,” Russell wrote.
Russell also dinged the ex-officer for not expressing remorse or accepting responsibility. The judge noted Hersl’s two infractions during his incarceration, for refusing to obey an order in 2020 and for disruptive conduct in 2022, saying they demonstrate “a continued lack of personal accountability.”
While incarcerated, Hersl penned a series of letters arguing his innocence and complaining about how he’d been treated in prison. He claimed he was a victim of “fabricated” stories, “prosecutorial misconduct” and “prison trauma.”
His now-dismissed pending pro se motions had argued he was wrongfully convicted, there was prosecutorial misconduct and he had received ineffective defense representation.
In his March note, Hersl reversed course and apologized, calling it “what is best for me and so many others that the G.T.T.F. may have affected.” He added that he hadn’t heard anyone apologize to the public or the justice system in the seven years since the scandal broke.
“I just want the people out there to know that I have always loved, and I miss Baltimore City so much. I was born and raised there and still follow the Raven’s, O’s and the news that happens in that city,” Hersl wrote.
After he was diagnosed with prostate cancer in February 2023, it metastasized to his lymph nodes, liver and lungs, according to his emergency motion for compassionate release. In September, a prison doctor gave him 18 months to live, it said. He is incarcerated at MCFP Springfield, a federal medical center for prisoners in Springfield, Missouri.
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