Lea el comunicado en español aquí.
BALTIMORE, MD (Tuesday, September 1, 2026) — Today, Mayor Brandon M. Scott announced that as of September 1, 2026, shootings and homicides in Baltimore City have continued to decline on the back of sustained, historic reductions in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Through this morning, the City has seen 72 homicides and 201 non-fatal shootings compared to last year, which saw 88 homicides and 213 non-fatal shootings, an 18.2% decrease in homicides and a 5.6% decrease in non-fatal shootings.
"As we mark the end of summer, Baltimore continues to make historic progress on public safety," said Mayor Brandon M. Scott. "All across our city, BPD officers and law enforcement partners, MONSE staff, prosecutors, everyone involved in our community violence intervention ecosystem, and most importantly, everyday Baltimoreans, are showing up for one another in our shared effort to build a safer, healthier Charm City. Our progress this summer is a testament to all of these individuals- and to the importance of the proven, data- and community-driven strategies that are delivering real results."
Additionally, as of August 29, 2026, Baltimore Police Department officers have seized over 1,367 firearms, including 138 ghost guns, and made 826 gun arrests so far this year.
Crime continues to drop across other major categories. As of August 29, 2026, carjackings are down 44%, burglaries are down 16%, and total robberies are down 13% compared to the same time period last year.
Baltimore's Group Violence Reduction Strategy (GVRS), a key partnership between the Baltimore Police Department (BPD), the Mayor's Office, prosecutors, and community members, which focuses on violent social networks responsible for driving the majority of the violence in Baltimore, has seen success balancing services and accountability. As of August 25, 2026, GVRS has led to over 675 arrests, including 600 by BPD's Group Violence Unit (GVU), and connected over 420 individuals to life coaching and wraparound services through YAP, Inc., and Roca since it was first launched in BPD's Western District in 2022. Approximately 91.2% of GVRS participants have not been revictimized after being enrolled in services.
Safe Streets Baltimore, the City's flagship community violence intervention program, has seen five of its ten sites, Park Heights, Woodbourne-McCabe, Sandtown, Penn North, and McElderry Park reach a milestone of over 365 days without a homicide within their respective catchment zones so far this year. As of August 29, 2026, Safe Streets frontline intervention staff have successfully mediated over 929 potentially violent conflicts and referred over 338 residents at-risk of being involved in violence to wraparound support services so far this year.
Baltimore's progress comes as a growing body of academic research assesses the city's dramatic reduction in violent crime. In June, the University of Pennsylvania's Crime and Justice Policy Lab released a new National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) paper that found Baltimore's Group Violence Reduction Strategy (GVRS) played a key role in Baltimore's historic reductions in homicides. In May, research from the Johns Hopkins University's Center for Gun Violence Solutions found Baltimore's Safe Streets program was associated with a sharp reduction in youth homicides.
Mayor Brandon M. Scott and MONSE are continuing to engage the public in the process to develop the City's second Comprehensive Violence Prevention Plan (CVPP), which will be a new five-year roadmap to build on the historic progress of the last five years and deepen the City's commitment to a holistic, community- and trauma-centered public safety approach from 2026-2031 (Fiscal Year '27–Fiscal Year '31). This next plan will be finalized and officially released by early Fall of 2026. Residents are encouraged to attend upcoming listening sessions and share feedback on the plan through the public survey or directly via email to monse@baltimorecity.gov.
