BALTIMORE — Today, city leaders announced plans to expand the Group Violence Reduction Strategy, otherwise known as a crime fighting tactic.
Since GVRS was rolled out in January 2022, in the Western District, city leaders said it’s already reduced crime in the district.
Shantay Jackson, who’s the Director of the Mayor’s office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, said that’s why they’re planning to implement GVRS in other areas to hopefully get the same results.
“In a 5-year period, in one district, 818 people were either killed or victimized by gun violence,” Jackson said.
Since GVRS launched in the western district, data shows there has been a decrease in the amount of people killed or shot in west Baltimore.
“ While we’re in the western district right now, we see its down 33.8 percent,” Jackson said.
It’s why within the first quarter of 2023, city leaders plan to expand GVRS starting in the southwest district. Commissioner Michael Harrison said this work does not replace traditional policing but instead it enhances it.
“ It is a paradigm shift, it does not replace traditional policing that will always continue. But, for far too long there has been a total reliance on just policing deployment and police investigations as enforcement. We have to add changing life conditions which is a different way of thinking for police. This strategy involves an intentional collaboration between our department social service providers and community members,” Harrison said.
By collaborating with city, state, and federal partners focusing specifically on this group violence, city leaders are optimistic these expanded efforts will start to produce results in other parts of the city. Many said they are still optimistic even though other administrations have tried to implement it before.
Jeremy Biddle, who works on the technical assistance team supporting the city with GVRS, said if the program was never implemented the homicide and non fatal shooting would be even higher.
“ If the strategy is working, why are we here? We have to look at the counterfactual, if this strategy had not been implemented just a very rough back of the analysis we would be up 5 % both in homicides and non-fatal shootings that would be the alternative," Biddle said.
Although this is the third time GVRS has been implemented in the city, it’s the first time under Mayor Scott’s administration and city leaders said it’s the first time its been done correctly.
The local police union issued this critical letter in response to the expansion.
