City Leaders Hope $5 Million Bloomberg Grant Will Help Curb Violent Crime In Baltimore
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Nearing the end of a violent year, city leaders are taking new steps to end the carnage in Baltimore.
Soaring violence and a skyrocketing murder rate have made Baltimore one of the most dangerous cities in the country.
The mayor hopes a $5 million donation can help curb the epidemic of violence here.
City leaders say that gift will pay for more crime fighting technology.
The donation was announced just days after Governor Larry Hogan said the state plans to step in to get Baltimore's violence under control.
The list of Baltimore murder victims is 322 names long. Victims of an urban war zone, where no one has been able to stop the slow bleed on Baltimore's streets.
Teenage criminals have been behind brutal beatings in the Inner Harbor.
"I'm pretty damn certain that their parents and guardians, and grandparents, and neighbors know who the hell they are as well," Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis said after the attacks. "Step up. Step forward. Get a hold of these violent kids."
Last weekend, deadly gunfire claimed the life of volunteer firefighter Jon Hickey. He was found executed inside his upper Fell's Point home.
Three miles away, and nearly three weeks ago, in the Harlem Park neighborhood, the high profile murder of veteran Baltimore PD detective Sean Suiter occurred.
Both cases remain unsolved, as the relentless violence in 2017 makes Baltimore more murderous than even Chicago.
There have been 23 murders per every 100,000 people in Chicago.
While here in Baltimore, the killing rate is more than double that.
Mayor Catherine Pugh says getting it under control is her top priority.
"We understand there's a need for more technology in our police department, certainly a need for more police officers," Pugh said.
Now, Baltimore is getting help with a $5 million gift from Pugh's mentor, and Johns Hopkins grad, Michael Bloomberg.
Back in August, he told WJZ that it will take more police, fewer illegal guns on the streets, and education opportunities to make Baltimore safe.
"The bottom line is there's a small group of people who are committing most of the crimes, most of the murders," he said.
His donation will funnel into neighborhoods, in the form of surveillance cameras, license plate readers, and gunshot detection technology.
This is the latest shot at stopping the citywide slow motion massacre.
The new cameras and other technology should be installed in the spring.
Mayor Pugh says she's also working on shortening the police hiring process down to three months, in order to get more officers on the streets.
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