Particle.news

Download on the App Store

Baltimore Posts Lowest Homicides in Over 50 Years While Some Districts See No Decline

City leaders credit a coordinated public safety strategy for record crime reductions coupled with plans to strengthen community policing to reach lagging neighborhoods

Gov. Wes Moore and Ivan Bates, State’s Attorney for Baltimore City, survey houses in the Four by Four neighborhood during a Community Walk with Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, officials and community members. On right is Eric Costello, District 11 council member.
During a news conference at City Police headquarters this morning, Police Commissioner Richard Worley, left, and Mayor Brandon Scott, right, announced the takedown of a drug trafficking organization that was operating in East Baltimore.

Overview

  • In the first half of 2025, homicides dropped 22.7% and nonfatal shootings fell 19.6% compared with the same period in 2024.
  • There were 68 homicides through June, marking the fewest recorded in Baltimore since the early 1970s.
  • Three of nine police districts showed flat or rising homicide numbers, including an increase in the Southwest district.
  • Homicide clearance rates rose to 64% and nonfatal shooting clearances to 44%, both about 20% above the city’s ten-year average.
  • Recent police-involved fatalities have underscored trust challenges and prompted calls for deeper community engagement and targeted interventions.