Baltimore bloodshed drops as law-and-order push targets repeat criminals

Baltimore recorded a crisp driblet successful homicides successful 2025, continuing a multi-year diminution that metropolis prosecutors accidental is the effect of pugnacious connected transgression policing of repetition convulsive offenders.

According to statistic provided by the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office, homicides fell to 134 successful 2025, down from 202 successful 2024, 263 successful 2023 and 334 successful 2022.

"You know, erstwhile I came into this office, we'd had 8 consecutive years of 300 positive murders," Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan Bates told Fox News Digital. "The lone mode you're going to absorption connected convulsive transgression successful Baltimore City is you indispensable enactment repetition convulsive offenders successful prison."

"When we were sworn in, we said, ‘If you’re a repetition convulsive offender, bring a toothbrush.’ That was the connection we sent – meaning we’re going to nonstop you to jail," helium said.

Baltimore State Attorney Ivan Bates discussed the city’s driblet successful homicides successful 2025 with Fox News Digital, crediting pugnacious connected transgression prosecution. (Fox News Digital)

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Bates, who took bureau successful January 2023, said his medication shifted the office’s attack to enforcing mandatory minimum sentences for repetition offenders, which helium says was inconsistently applied previously.

State information amusement that successful 2022, constabulary arrested 1,577 repetition convulsive offenders. Of those, 869 were convicted, but lone 267, oregon 31%, were sentenced.

Under Bates, the percent of repetition offenders sentenced has risen sharply: 58% successful 2023, 69% successful 2024 and 65% successful 2025.

"This twelvemonth alone, retired of the 1,160 repetition convulsive offenders, 682 were recovered blameworthy of that offense. We sent 443 of them to prison," Bates said. "That's 65% of them."

In 2025, Baltimore recorded 133 homicides, marking the city's lowest homicide number successful astir 50 years and completing a historical three-year diminution nether the Bates/Scott administration. (Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office)

Maryland instrumentality allows prosecutors to question a five-year mandatory situation condemnation without parole for repetition offenders recovered successful possession of amerciable firearms. Bates said that enforcing authorities instrumentality has been cardinal to his office’s strategy to

"That means it's a tiny radical of individuals successful Baltimore who are robbing, shooting and sidesplitting individuals," helium said. "By uncovering them guilty, they're present removed from the assemblage for a minimum of 5 years without the anticipation of parole."

Police arrests of repetition weapon offenders person declined implicit the aforesaid period, according to the data: 1,294 arrests successful 2023, 1,246 successful 2024, and 1,160 successful 2025. Bates said that shows that determination are fewer repetition offenders inactive connected the streets.

"That tells maine that we've been taking the repetition convulsive offenders disconnected the streets," helium said.

Police and different officials analyse a wide shooting successful Baltimore County successful the 8500 artifact of Loch Raven Boulevard. (Kim Hairston/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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In summation to sentencing changes, Bates pointed to accrued practice with national agencies, including the FBI, DEA, ATF and neighboring Baltimore County.

Through the city’s Group Violence Reduction Strategy (GVRS) and done partnering with the national authorities to disrupt cause commercialized wrong the city.

"The soundless spouse has truly besides been the national authorities," helium said. "We're capable to instrumentality down ample cause organizations successful a mode and a mode we haven't been capable to do."

Bates besides credits rebuilding the State’s Attorney’s Office, which helium said had been understaffed erstwhile helium took office.

"When I came into bureau successful 2023, we lone had 140 lawyers," helium said. "Our bureau went from 140 prosecutors to 200 prosecutors."

While nationalist transgression rates person declined successful caller years, Bates said Baltimore’s driblet has outpaced nationalist trends, though helium cautioned that the gains could beryllium impermanent without concern successful re-entry programs.

"If we bash not bash the hard enactment of investing and giving individuals an accidental successful an exit lane to get retired of the transgression life, we tin spot that benignant of behaviour rearing its head," helium said.

Bates said his bureau is moving with authorities leaders connected programs aimed astatine repetition offenders returning from situation but acknowledged that prosecutors unsocial cannot code recidivism.

"I'm present connected behalf of the victim. The victim, the victim, the victim," Bates said. "There are immoderate radical that indispensable spell to jailhouse and immoderate of them request to beryllium successful jailhouse the remainder of their earthy calved lives."

"My occupation arsenic the state's lawyer is to basal up for the victims and marque definite our assemblage is harmless arsenic possible," helium said.

Looting and rioting broke retired connected April 27, 2015, astatine North and Pennsylvania Avenues wherever a CVS store was acceptable connected fire. (Algerina Perna/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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Despite the citywide decline, Baltimore’s amusement districts, including Federal Hill, person continued to acquisition shootings.

Police adept Jason Johnson told WBFF, "Obviously, homicides and non-fatal shootings are down, which is fantastic. But that leaves america with immoderate of these crimes that are conscionable arsenic apt to thrust radical retired of the metropolis oregon dismay radical from adjacent visiting the city."

Baltimore is not the lone metropolis seeing a alteration successful homicides, with execution rates falling crossed cities successful the U.S. successful 2025.

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The Council connected Criminal Justice (CCJ) study weighed transgression statistic from 40 cities that person reported monthly information for the past 8 years. It recovered 11 of 13 transgression categories dropped successful 2025 compared to 2024. Nine of them dropped by 10% oregon more, including homicides, which saw a 21% drop.

"President Trump promised to bring backmost Law and Order to the United States of America," White House property caput Karoline Leavitt wrote connected X Thursday morning, on with a illustration from the Council connected Criminal Justice showing the state saw its lowest homicide complaint since 1900. "This is what happens erstwhile you person a President who afloat mobilizes national instrumentality enforcement to apprehension convulsive criminals and the worst of the worst amerciable aliens."

Fox News Digital's Julia Bonavita and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.