What causes youth gun violence? Mayor Scott and city leaders speak
BALTIMORE — Mayor Scott and city leaders spoke at a panel Thursday afternoon, expressing their views on the causes of youth gun violence. With an increase in shooting incidents among those under the age of 18, the lingering question for families and communities, is 'why'?
Mayor Scott said the answer to reducing gun violence is to take a wholistic approach to addressing youth violence. Scott said it's not just about who pulled the trigger, but "who pulled the trigger in the person."
Related: Protecting Our Children: Town Hall addresses youth violence plaguing Baltimore
"Yes, it matters who pulled the trigger. But also matter where that gun came from, who bought the gun, and who traffics it here. The mental state of the person who pulled the trigger, the mental state of the person that that was the victim, what their family environment is like, what their economic situation is like," Mayor Scott said.
According to the Baltimore City Police Department, homicide arrests and non-fatal shootings have tripled between 2018 and 2020, an increase of 113%.
Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said the increase in shootings is due to multiple factors, starting with the increased access to guns. "It is important to find the person and stop the person from pulling the trigger, but it is also important to stop and find the people bringing guns into our city because these young people are getting these guns as easily as they can go to the store," Harrison said.
Harrison also said that there's an increase in the amount of guns that can't be traced, which presents a challenge for law enforcement seeking to solve crimes.
Both Mayor Scott and Commissioner Harrison said it's important to consider that youthful minds do not possess the same ability to reason as mature adults. Harrison said Baltimore Police are working to do this by train officers to respond to incidents based off of behavior, not presumption.
"The last thing we want is for officers to have a preconceived notion about who the person is they're engaging with, and that we have these biases," Harrison said. To mitigate this, Harrison said the department is training officers on identifying biases, and how to understand how the development of a young person's mind can contribute to their behavior, through a program called Roca Rewire.
