Baltimore police, residents partner to cut crime as juvenile violence raises concern

BALTIMORE -- A new holistic initiative called Safe Growth aims to curb crime in neighborhoods across Baltimore, improving areas from lighting, adding cameras and stopping illegal dumping, even as several recent incidents involving juveniles have raised alarm.

One of the neighborhoods targeted is in Northeast Baltimore where the shopping center at Frankford and Sinclair has long been a crime hotspot.

WJZ has covered the problems going back a decade. 

Surveillance video captured gunmen opening fire in a frightening incident there two years ago.     

"It's been overtaken with gang activity and gun violence. Since the pandemic, we've had 12 shootings in this corridor," said Baltimore Police Detective Aaron Frederick.

Innovative Partnership

The innovative partnership between city agencies, neighbors and police has devised a plan to improve lighting and security cameras and work with business owners hoping to cut the crime. 

"This is an 18-month minimum project to actually have everybody start diving in," Detective Frederick said. 

The model is being used in seven neighborhoods across the city. Safe Growth has been used in communities internationally and in New York City and Madison, Wisconsin among other cities.

"The police department can't fix every problem so all the other city agencies have to step up and they have," Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley told WJZ.

Worley added, "The program you see here is what community policing is. It's the community, the police department and other city agencies coming together to make the community better."

Juvenile Crime

A big issue in Baltimore is juvenile crime. 

Youth carjackings are up 233% this year compared to last year. Robberies involving juveniles are up 44%.

However, several categories are down by double-digit percentages, including auto theft, burglary and homicide.

A video posted to Nextdoor shows an incident in Fells Point over the weekend where police said a 13-year-old stole a man's phone after he came to the assistance of his wife when juveniles tried to light her hair on fire during a confrontation over vandalism. 

Last Thursday, teenagers carjacked a 79-year-old man on Clarks Lane in Northwest Baltimore. Police arrested two 15-year-old suspects. 

Saturday, police arrested a teen who they said struck a pedestrian and a patrol car with a carjacked vehicle on West Saratoga Street.     

Also last week, police arrested a 16-year-old for carjacking an 83-year-old woman.     

"To attack an 83-year-old older adult in a handicapped parking space doing nothing more than getting their groceries out of her vehicle is uncalled for, and yes, we will hold this young person accountable," Baltimore City State's Attorney Ivan Bates said. 

Bates also told WJZ, "Hopefully, this will be a deterrent to other young people to decide that they cannot do these kinds of actions. We want to get young people the kind of services they need. However, this kind of behavior is not going to be tolerated. With this behavior, you put the community locked in a prison because they're afraid to go out of their own house."

Commissioner Worley also addressed juvenile crime on Tuesday. 

"Our job is to go out and arrest the offenders and take them into custody, and we turn it over to the Department of Juvenile Services or the state's attorney for them to do the prosecution model," Worley said. "We can't do anything about who they prosecute, who they continue to hold. We can continue to make arrests, and our men and women have done a fabulous job with that."

Southeast Baltimore Safety

The hope is getting community members more involved—developing plans to tackle crime hotspots—will make the entire city safer.

Arch McKown, with the Patterson Park Neighborhood Association, is working on the Safe Growth plan for the Baltimore Highlands neighborhood in the southeast part of the city. 

"If you have an environment that's cleaner, greener, if it's well lit, people are going to feel safer than if it's dark," he said. "…Kind of look at all the issues and really nuts and bolts how to make things safer but also make people feel safer."