By — Christopher Booker Christopher Booker Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/baltimore-reaches-grim-milestone-with-300-murdered-this-year Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Baltimore reaches grim milestone with 300 murdered this year Nation Nov 15, 2015 5:48 PM EDT Baltimore hit a grim milestone Saturday as the city’s homicide rate reached 300, following the fatal stabbing of a 27-year-old. The city has not seen a tally that high since 1999. 2015 has been a violent year in Baltimore as shootings have increased by 80 percent, pushing the city’s per-capita homicide rate to the second highest in the country after St. Louis. Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake released the following statement: The 300th homicide is no more tragic than the first homicide of 2015, or the 50th, or the 200th. Every victim leaves family, friends and a neighborhood who mourn their loss. All of us must come together as a community to fight this violence. Unfortunately, the violence we are experiencing in Baltimore is occurring in many cities across our nation, which is why I will be joining with other leaders of the U.S. Conference of Mayors on Monday to meet with Attorney General Lynch to press for more federal assistance. We have brought our city’s homicide numbers down to dramatic lows before, and I am confident that we can do it again. A few hours after the 300th homicide, a 22-year old man was fatally shot in the chest, bringing the number up to 301. We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Christopher Booker Christopher Booker Christopher Booker is a correspondent and producer for PBS NewsHour Weekend covering music, culture, our changing economy and news of the cool and weird. He also teaches at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, following his work with Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism in Chicago and Doha, Qatar.
Baltimore hit a grim milestone Saturday as the city’s homicide rate reached 300, following the fatal stabbing of a 27-year-old. The city has not seen a tally that high since 1999. 2015 has been a violent year in Baltimore as shootings have increased by 80 percent, pushing the city’s per-capita homicide rate to the second highest in the country after St. Louis. Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake released the following statement: The 300th homicide is no more tragic than the first homicide of 2015, or the 50th, or the 200th. Every victim leaves family, friends and a neighborhood who mourn their loss. All of us must come together as a community to fight this violence. Unfortunately, the violence we are experiencing in Baltimore is occurring in many cities across our nation, which is why I will be joining with other leaders of the U.S. Conference of Mayors on Monday to meet with Attorney General Lynch to press for more federal assistance. We have brought our city’s homicide numbers down to dramatic lows before, and I am confident that we can do it again. A few hours after the 300th homicide, a 22-year old man was fatally shot in the chest, bringing the number up to 301. We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now