Baltimore sees more than 10% increase in non-fatal shootings from 2020
Originally published in FOX45 News
BALTIMORE (WBFF) -- We're more than halfway through 2021, and Baltimore continues to outpace last year when it comes to the growing violence in the city.
So far, more than 350 have been shot, injured and survived in what police label "non-fatal" shootings. Statistics show that's a more than 10% increase in non-fatal shootings from this same time last year.
"What's occurring on the streets is that people are absolutely brutal and brazen," said Sean Kennedy, a visiting fellow at the Maryland Public Policy Institute.
Monday afternoon, Baltimore Police said a 16 year-old child was shot multiple times in the arms and legs on McCulloh Street. While the young boy is expected to survive, he joins a growing statistic of the walking wounded.
Kennedy believes the rise in non-fatal shootings can be attributed to the sheer brazenness of those pulling the trigger, who seem to be spraying more bullets to inflict as much pain as possible.
"The fact that there are more injuries that don't end in deaths suggests that there's more indiscriminate firing and these people have even less concern for human life," Kennedy said.
But while violent killers haven't slowed down their reign of terror on city streets, neither have those tasked with trying to save those who become victims to the violence.
"If Baltimore's shock trauma centers and response times were worse, Baltimore's homicide rate would be 50% higher or even higher," Kennedy said.
Experts say lives are not only being saved in the city's world-renowned hospitals but also on the scene where many of these people were shot.
In recent years, Baltimore Police officers have also received special training to administer aid to gunshot victims when they're the first on scene and before EMS arrives.
Over the weekend, police credited an officer for jumping into action to help a 12-year-old who had been shot in the chest.
"We know that this type of intervention is very effective," Dr. Andrew Pollak with University of Maryland Medical System told Operation Crime & Justice back in March. "It's easy to teach and it's been very very critical in allowing us to keep people alive."
While those solutions have helped save those who are shot on the streets, stopping the bullets from being fired in the first place remains an uphill battle that continues to have tragic consequences.