Make Our Neighborhoods Safer

EnsurE Emergency Response Efficiency

When an emergency incident occurs, every second counts. Reports of residents calling 9-1-1 and being placed on hold is unacceptable. I will work with the City’s Finance Department to ensure the call center is fully staffed, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Support our Detectives

Our city detectives are consistently working caseloads that are 2 to 3 times the national average. When these public servants are unable to do their important work properly, criminal activity is less likely to be investigated accurately or in a timely manner. As your council member, I will work with relevant law enforcement agencies to fill vacancies and reduce burnout by developing processes and regulations to ensure our detectives can gather the evidence and information necessary to pinpoint suspects.

Serve our Firefighters and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Professionals

When emergencies arise, our firefighters and EMS staff are often the first people on the scene. Since they work around the clock to ensure our safety, these public servants deserve modern facilities that are safe, clean, and livable. I will work with the City’s Department of General Services to locate additional state and federal dollars for the purpose of upgrading our aging Fire Department facilities and ensuring all first responder vehicles are up-to-date, safe, and reliable.

Expand Baltimore Police Department (BPD) De-escalation Training

Sometimes people will call 9-1-1 to report an individual who is experiencing a behavioral health crisis, such as a drug overdose or psychotic episode. The United States Department of Justice found that BPD officers were not properly trained in de-escalating situations, and thus responded improperly to individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis.

Prioritize hiring more bilingual officers to the sworn police force:

A Baltimore Police Department that resembles the community they are tasked with serving is better equipped to keep us safe. Hiring more multilingual officers to patrol communities with large international or immigrant populations, including the First District, will help foster stronger relationships between the department and the community, in turn driving crime down.

EXPAND BIKE & ON-FOOT POLICE PATROLS

We must place more of our police officers on street and bike patrols. Opportunities for positive interactions between community members and law enforcement are limited due to the amount of time officers spend in their vehicles. Additionally, more walking and biking options benefit these city employees mentally and physically.

IDENTIFY & REMOVE ABANDONED VEHICLES

Utilizing citizen reporting, the 3-1-1 platform, and law enforcement, I will make the identification and processing of abandoned or stolen vehicles a priority. Working with the Sheriff’s office and the Baltimore  Police Department, we will remove abandoned vehicles from our streets – and if stolen – return them to their rightful owners

RESPOND TO VEHICULAR CRIMES

I will work with law enforcement agencies to ensure Baltimore City police districts have an investigation team dedicated to solving vehicle thefts and violence committed from them. We should also explore the expansion of license plate readers at integral thoroughfares that alert law enforcement when a stolen vehicle is detected. We must ensure that those responsible for these criminal activities are held accountable. I will work alongside our state leaders to develop common-sense approaches to the apprehension of perpetrators, including juveniles.

Work with the State’s Attorney’s Office to Get Illegal Guns Off Our Streets

As your council member, I will work with the State’s Attorney’s office to set citywide goals and implement proven programs to lower the propensity of illegal guns on our streets.

Grow Awareness of Unsafe Gun Ownership

Due to a recent Supreme Court decision, our city and state’s ability to regulate open-carry permits has been gutted. We must educate the public on common-sense ways to ensure that legally owned guns are not found in the hands of children and those who wish to do harm to themselves or others. For example, no one should leave a firearm in their car – it leaves it vulnerable to being stolen and used in future criminal activity.

Reimagine Gun Buyback Programs

No real correlation has been made between firearm crime reduction and gun buyback programs, but I believe any unwanted gun should be handed over to law enforcement for elimination. Working with Baltimore City police, I will examine our current approach and explore ways to make gun buyback program outcomes better. For example, the city should provide grocery gift cards as compensation instead of providing money that could be used to buy a new gun. Additionally, new, safe methods for illegal and legal firearm handovers to law enforcement must be explored.

ENFORCE Traffic LawS

Cars are being driven recklessly through our neighborhoods - oftentimes by non-city residents. Our streets and sidewalks are public spaces that our families, friends and neighbors should feel safe traversing. As of late, our public safety agencies have put traffic violation monitoring and enforcement on the back burner. As your council member, I will demand that the Baltimore Police Department proactively address traffic violations. While citation quotas are not the answer, accountability for record low enforcement certainly is. With 17,000 vehicular crashes occurring each year in our city – that’s unacceptable.

CALM OUR ROAD Infrastructure

There are proven, oftentimes low cost ways to reduce traffic crashes and make neighborhood streets safer for residents and pedestrians. The Complete Streets Ordinance has been adopted for several years now. It’s long past time to overhaul our streets to re-imagine dangerous stroads and truly build safer, more accessible streets across Baltimore.

EXPAND OUR Cyclist Infrastructure

We must work with our communities to maintain and expand our bike lane network. Not only do they encourage healthy, fitness-oriented travel, but also calm traffic – keeping vehicle drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians safer. How? They keep people more focused on the road as they aim to stay within adjusted traffic lines.