Baltimore city streets were turned into a virtual crime zone over the holiday weekend, with 28 people shot and nine left dead by the time a gruesome Memorial Day weekend wrapped.
CBS Baltimore reported the violence capped the worst month the city has seen in terms of deadly incidents in 15-plus years.
Former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown blamed the spate of shootings on poor leadership, saying during a Fox & Friends morning segment the mayor in particular, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, ought to be ashamed for criticizing the crime statistics after she fueled Freddie Gray protests by suggesting officers needed to back off protesters and let them have their First Amendment say.
Gray was the black man who died in April, shortly after police took him into custody.
Read “America Fights Back: Armed Self-Defense In A Violent Age,” by Alan Gottlieb and Dave Workman.
As previously reported by WND, at least one unnamed police officer has said law enforcement officers – stung by the political criticisms from the protests – have taken a somewhat lackadaisical approach to dealing with crime in the city, purposely backing off duties out of fear of political reprimands.
The result has been devastating to the community.
CBS reported Baltimore police responded to six shootings on Friday night, seven on Saturday, five on Sunday and 10 more by Monday evening. One of those incidents involved a 9-year-old boy who was shot in the leg.
Investigators have called on the community to help, telling witnesses to call police and report suspects’ descriptions.
Meanwhile, Rawlings-Blake met with the police commissioner and other law enforcement officials to try and stem the surge in violent crime.
“My hope is the police will get the support they need from the community to be able to get some answers and bring some of these individuals to justice,” she said, CBS reported.
Baltimore is hardly the only American city suffering under a wave of violent crime.
Twelve people were killed and 43 or so wounded over the Memorial Day weekend in Chicago. Among the injured: a 4-year-old girl, who was inside an SUV with her 17-year-old cousin when another vehicle pulled alongside and the occupants opened fire.
CBS Chicago reported the girl was shot in the head, but deemed in fair condition on Monday, while the teen was shot in the chest and still considered in serious condition.
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