Tired of burgeoning violent crime in their city despite extremely restrictive gun laws, Baltimore city leaders are finally turning toward a solution that can really make a different.
Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis and State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby called a press conference on Wednesday to announce the formation of a new task force targeting violent, repeat gun offenders. The Gun Violence Enforcement Division will be housed within Mosby’s office and will be manned by a team of “elite” prosecutors and police detectives. The unit, Mosby said, would have just one responsibility: “To ensure the aggregation of intelligence that's extracted from my criminal strategies unit and the Baltimore Police Department is used to not only apprehend and charge, but to convict those who are administering gun violence in the city.”
The announcement of the task force comes the same week that three 16-year-olds were shot. According to officials, there have been more than 650 shootings in Baltimore this year—and guns have been used in 177 of the city's 215 homicides.
