Baltimore Crime Seems to be Decreasing After Violent 2017

The amount of crime in Baltimore seems to have decreased after breaking records last year, reported The Baltimore Sun. Comparing January-March data from 2017 and 2018, there appears to be a drop in criminal activity across the board.

Homicide and murder decreased 27 percent from the same time period last year. Other violent crimes dropped by 23 percent as well. Robberies decreased 18 percent from the same period last year. Burglaries dropped 27 percent as well. Additionally, aggravated assaults decreased by 24 percent from the same time period last year.

That being said, it is important to remember that 2017 was a crime-riddled year in Baltimore. There were more 342 homicides in Baltimore last year than any other year in the city’s history. Furthermore, murders spiked in January, February and March, starting a trend that continued throughout the year.

In order to make sense of this data, it will be helpful to focus on recent trends in Baltimore homicides. As a result, please find below a breakdown of the annual and January-March homicides in Baltimore for the past five years.

• In 2018, there were 60 homicides from January to March, which is a pace of 240 for the year;
• In 2017, there were 79 homicides from January to March and 342 total for the year;
• In 2016, there were 56 homicides from January to March and 318 total for the year;
• In 2015, there were 50 homicides from January to March and 342 total for the year; and
• In 2014, there were 44 homicides from January to March and 211 total for the year.

Judging from the data above, January-March homicides are down from 2017 this year. But the number of 2018 homicides remains higher than the same time period in 2016, 2015 and 2014.

Along that same vein, certain advocates are not satisfied with a minor improvement from 2017. One of those advocates is City Councilman Brandon Scott, who points to 2011 as the ultimate goal. In 2011, there were only 197 homicides. That is the smallest number of Baltimore homicides in any year since 1978.

On the other hand, certain city officials believe that recent data is part of a larger trend. Both Mayor Catherine E. Pugh and Police Commissioner Darryl De Sousa believe that crime is down because of recent initiatives targeted at reducing violence.

Specifically, Pugh and De Sousa have targeted the most violent areas of Baltimore. By deploying additional attention and resources to those high-risk zones, Pugh and De Sousa hope to make a permanent dent in Baltimore violence. De Sousa also underlined that a renewed focus on community relations has helped stem violence as well.

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Resource:

baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/bs-md-ci-city-violence-20180402-story.html