Year’s First Quarter Sustains Violent Crime Reduction

By Racquel Bazos - April 8, 2024
Attempted Murder | Data | Featured | Homicides | Non-Fatal Shooting | Shooting | Suspects |

The first quarter of the year has continued the city’s downward trend in violent crime, according to data collected and analyzed by Baltimore Witness from Baltimore Police Department (BPD) press releases.

Whereas the first three months of 2023 had 129 reported non-fatal shootings and 66 homicides, the same period in 2024 saw 97 non-fatal shootings and 47 homicides. The year-over-year reductions total 28% and 34% for each category.

In March itself, non-fatal shootings dropped slightly from February’s total, with 32 for the month. Monthly homicides have risen again to January’s total of 17. 

The Southern District was the only district without a reported homicide in March. The Central, Northwest and Northern districts all had single homicides. 

The Western, Northeast and Southwest districts all reported two homicides each. These rates equal February’s numbers for the Western and Southwest districts. The Northeast District’s homicide rate dropped by one month over month between February and March. One of the Northeast District’s homicide investigations involved a SWAT team raid on the 4000 block of Loch Raven Boulevard, but no suspect was apprehended. 

The Eastern District saw three homicides more than it did in February, which had zero reported murders.

The Southwest District doubled its February homicide rate, reporting four in March. The Southeast District had an identical number of incidents. One such case, the death of a 42-year-old man on the 3100 block of Pulaski Highway, resulted in an arrest the very next day. 

In non-fatal shootings, the Central District, which led the city’s metrics for the first two months of the year, only reported two incidents in March — down from nine in February. Its rate was matched by the Eastern District, which reduced its month-over-month number by one. 

The Northern, Southern and Northeastern districts all reported three non-fatal shootings. Another brief investigation led detectives to arrest a Northeast District attempted murder suspect six days after a White Avenue shooting.

The Northwest, Southwest and Southeast districts reported four shootings in March. One shooting victim in the Southeast District was a driver suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, who crashed his car into a parked vehicle on the 3000 block of East Pratt Street. The victim was last reported as in critical condition as of March 15.

The Western District had the most reported non-fatal shootings at five, equalling its rate for February. 

There was one homicide and two non-fatal shootings with unreported locations in March.