Crime drops in Baltimore, but juvenile violence remains a growing concern

BALTIMORE (WBFF) — Crime is trending down across Baltimore, but a troubling pattern involving young offenders continues to raise concern.

Baltimore Police said the city is seeing measurable progress, with declines in shootings and homicides. But, that progress is not being mirrored when it comes to juvenile crime.

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Dirt bike takeovers and so-called “teen link-ups” are bringing large crowds of young people to popular areas like the Inner Harbor, often organized through social media. Police said those gatherings can quickly spiral out of control — leading to fights, crashes, and in some cases, gunfire.

“I don’t like the fact that we’re arresting more kids. That’s the opposite direction I want to go,” Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said at a recent press conference for a shocking case involving three 14-year-olds.

Police body camera footage reportedly captures the teens running over a police officer while driving off in a stolen car. Two of them were already wearing ankle monitors from previous arrests.

We still have too many issues with our young people committing crimes just to be put back out on the street just to commit another crime,” Worley said.

In another case this week, a 10-year-old was arrested after crashing a stolen car with a 12-year-old reportedly in the passenger seat.

Baltimore City Sheriff Sam Cogen said the situation highlights the challenges of accountability when it comes to younger offenders.

“It looks like because of the age of the child that there’s not going to be criminal charges in this matter,” Cogen said. “But, the sheriff’s office is filing a petition for child in need of assistance because we believe that it’s highly problematic to have a 10-year-old operating a stolen motor vehicle.”

Law enforcement officials said cases like these are becoming more common, raising concerns about repeat offenders and whether current systems are doing enough to intervene.

Leaving Baltimore at a crossroads — a city making progress on paper, but in the streets, some of the problems are simply getting younger.