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New Baltimore Agency Would Divert More 911 Calls Away From Police
The plan would shift 22,000 nonviolent calls a year to social workers and peer specialists as Baltimore expands alternatives to police response.
- On Monday, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott and City Council President Zeke Cohen proposed creating the Department of Neighborhood Safety, a new agency designed to handle nonviolent 911 calls and ease strain on the city's emergency system.
- City officials estimate Baltimore 911 operators receive 22,000 nonviolent calls annually that could be handled without traditional law enforcement. The initiative is modeled after a program in Durham, North Carolina, which launched five years ago.
- The mayor's fiscal 2027 budget allocates more than $16 million to launch the department, which will incorporate the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement as a third branch of public safety.
- With introduction scheduled for Tuesday night, the proposal requires City Council approval before the city begins a nationwide search for an executive director to lead the department.
- Establishing this department helps Baltimore meet obligations under its federal consent decree, which requires a 24-hour alternative response system, freeing police to focus resources on reducing violent crime.
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New Baltimore agency would divert more 911 calls away from police
Baltimore lawmakers are considering a new Department of Neighborhood Safety that would incorporate the city’s existing crime diversion office and bolster 911 responses that don’t include traditional law enforcement, according to a city official. from The Baltimore Banner
Baltimore announced a new Department of Neighborhood Safety that will send behavioral health professionals, instead of police, to handle up to 22,000 nonviolent 911 calls every year.
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Total News Sources11
Leaning Left0Leaning Right1Center4Last UpdatedBias Distribution80% Center
Bias Distribution
- 80% of the sources are Center
80% Center
C 80%
R 20%
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