Safe Streets Brooklyn Achieves 365 Days with NoHomicides

Baltimore, MD (Tuesday, November 12, 2024) – Today, Mayor Brandon M. Scott, the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE), and Catholic Charities of Baltimore announced that the Safe Streets Brooklyn site has achieved over 365 days with no homicides in the site’s catchment zone.

The last homicide in the site’s boundaries took place 408 days ago on October 1, 2023, at the corner of E. Patapsco Avenue and 5th Street. In the broader Brooklyn community homicides are down approximately 86%, nonfatal shootings are down 76%, and total violent crime is down 48% in 2024 compared to this time last year.

“Homicides in Baltimore are down 24% and nonfatal shootings are down 35% compared to this time last year. These reductions could not be possible without Safe Streets and all of our community violence intervention partners,” said Mayor Brandon M. Scott. “The fact that we had over 365 days without a homicide in the Safe Streets Brooklyn catchment zone is not a coincidence, it is a testament to the crucial, life-saving work that the Safe Streets Brooklyn team does on a daily basis to mediate potentially violent conflicts and uplift their community.”

Safe Streets has played an integral role in supporting the Brooklyn community following the mass shooting that took place on July 2, 2023. The site continues to be active as part of MONSE’s ongoing presence in Brooklyn Homes, serving as a trusted messenger and helping to mobilize resources and address residents’ needs.

“Safe Streets is a critical component of the Mayor’s all-hands-on-deck approach to public safety. This achievement clearly shows that this work saves lives and demonstrates the immense value of treating violence as a public health issue in ways that go beyond the three P’s of policing, prisons, and prosecution,” said MONSE Director Stefanie Mavronis. “We are committed to continuing to support and strengthen Safe Streets Brooklyn and all Safe Streets sites as part of our shared commitment to building a better, safer Baltimore for everyone who lives, works, or plays in our great city.”

As of November 7, 2024, Safe Streets employees have mediated over 1,095 potentially violent conflicts this calendar year.

In addition to the Brooklyn site, Safe Streets Woodbourne-McCabe also reached 393 days without a homicide within site boundaries from August 25, 2023, to September 21, 2024. These two sites join four other Safe Streets locations that have achieved over 365 days without a homicide in their respective catchment zones this calendar year: Belvedere, Franklin Square, Park Heights, and Penn-North.

There are ten Safe Streets Baltimore sites located across Baltimore in neighborhoods with historically high levels of gun violence. The Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) is responsible for oversight of the Safe Streets Baltimore program and contracts with community-based organizations – Associated Catholic Charities and Lifebridge Health Center for Hope – to serve as site administrators. Catholic Charities operates the Brooklyn site as well as the Penn-North, Sandtown-Winchester, and Cherry Hill locations. LifeBridge Health’s Center for Hope serves as the operator for the Belvedere, Park Heights, Woodbourne-McCabe, Belair-Edison, McElderry Park, and Franklin Square locations.

“There has not been a single homicide in the area served by the Brooklyn Safe Streets team for more than a year. The importance and value of this achievement cannot be overstated because it is measured in the most precious resource of all – human lives,” said Bill McCarthy, Executive Director of Catholic Charities.

As outlined in the Mayor’s Comprehensive Violence Prevention Plan, the Scott Administration has committed to supporting and strengthening Safe Streets. The program serves as the flagship gun violence intervention program associated with Baltimore’s Community Violence Intervention ecosystem alongside Hospital-based Violence Intervention Programs, School-based Violence Intervention Programs, and other community-based violence intervention organizations.

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health published a report in April of last year that found that Safe Streets reduced homicides and nonfatal shootings in neighborhoods where it is present, estimating an economic benefit of between $7.2 to $19.2 for every $1 invested in Safe Streets depending on the method used to calculate the cost of gun violence.

MONSE publishes regular reports on Safe Streets on the agency’s website, where residents can learn more about this work: Reports and Resources | Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (baltimorecity.gov).

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About Safe Streets

Launched in Baltimore City in 2007, Safe Streets is a public health CVI initiative aimed at reducing shootings and homicides in targeted areas of Baltimore City. It is a movement holding the belief that violence is a disease that can be cured. Safe Streets employs credible messengers that are known in and understand the community in which they work. They are taught conflict resolution best practices and receive conflict mediation training and then inject these strategies back into their communities as the antidote against the disease of violence. This is achieved by targeting and building rapport with the high risk and key individuals who are likely to shoot or be shot. This program follows the Cure Violence model for violence intervention.

In addition to mediating conflicts, Safe Streets sites regularly hold events and partner with other community-based organizations to grow relationships with residents, foster a stronger sense of community in site catchment zones, and distribute resources that help address the root causes of violence.

Safe Streets is staffed by carefully selected individuals who have the ability to:

• Connect with those who are at the highest risk for involvement in gun violence;
• Mediate disputes;
• Promote nonviolent norms for settling disputes; and
• Connect people to services.

Safe Streets mediations are defined as the process of resolving a dispute or conflict by:

• Listening to each party involved;
• Calming the situation down;
• Identifying ways to meet each side’s needs;
• Adequately addressing interests so each party is satisfied with the outcome and the conflict is successfully resolved.

About Catholic Charities of Baltimore

Catholic Charities of Baltimore is Maryland’s largest private provider of human services, with more than 80 programs in 200 locations. Inspired by the gospel mandates to love, serve, and teach, Catholic Charities is committed to a Maryland where each person has the opportunity to reach his or her God-given potential. Catholic Charities was established in 1923 and focuses on the key causes of Achieving Independence, Welcoming New Neighbors, Empowering Careers, Supporting Children & Families, Healing Trauma & Addiction and Aging with Dignity. Today, Catholic Charities is a family of more than 2,000 talented and dedicated colleagues, supported by nearly 8,000 selfless volunteers, and more than 10,000 generous donors. This Catholic Charities community includes people of all faiths, ages, and ethnicities, and together, they touch the lives of hundreds of thousands of individuals and families each year.