As Trump pushes for National Guard troops in Baltimore, what crime data reveals about safety fears

President Trump said he wants to send the National Guard into yet another city—Memphis, Tennessee. But Baltimore remains a target.

The president has sharply criticized crime in Baltimore and faced pushback from the mayor and the governor. 

It comes as overall violent crime is down.

"I feel frightened to go certain places..."

On September 5, Governor Wes Moore and Mayor Brandon Scott walked in Northwest Baltimore's Park Heights community and touted improving crime numbers.

On Friday, WJZ spoke to a man a few blocks away who said he still does not feel safe. The neighbor declined to give their name for safety reasons.

"I feel frightened to go to certain places," he said. "I don't think the crime has stopped."

Three weeks ago, his 26-year-old acquaintance became one of Baltimore's 95 homicide victims this year, shot dead near Druid Hill Park.

"I just talked to him and saw him earlier that morning, and by the time night came, he's gone," he said. 

And while the Baltimore resident did not agree with President Trump that the city needs National Guard troops, he said crime is still too high. 

"You've got to do something about it. I guess Trump had to bring in the hammer to bring them down. If they won't stop, you've gotta find a way to stop them," he said. 

President's comments 

Trump has repeatedly spoken about Baltimore's crime in recent weeks. 

On September 2, he called the city "a very unsafe place" and "one of the worst, one of the most unsafe places anywhere in the world."

He said, "I have an obligation to protect this country, and that includes Baltimore."

The president even went as far as calling the city a "hellhole" last month.

What the numbers show

Crime data shows Baltimore is safer than it has been in years. 

Homicides are down 27% year-to-date. 95 people had been killed as of Friday morning, compared to 131 homicides at the same time in 2024.

Nonfatal shootings are down 19.8%. There have been 227 victims this year compared to 283 at this time last year. 

The CBS News data team found that overall violent crime is down 17.5%. That includes double-digit decreases in robberies (down 26%), sexual offenses (down 25%), aggravated assaults (down 10%), and overall property crime (down 10%). Those numbers are from January 1 to September 8. 

You can access more information from the CBS News data team on violence in Baltimore here.

Nancy Pelosi weighs in 

Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, a Baltimore native, addressed the president's push at an appearance in Baltimore County on Friday 

"I'm not sure what he has in mind for Baltimore. I do not think that some of the rhetoric that is coming out of The White House is encouraging. I don't want it to be fearful though—for people to be afraid—so we just have to show our strength," she said. 

The California Democrat and former House Speaker also said, "The most important thing in all this is unity, is to just say we're all in this together. I've said to the caucus many times our diversity is our strength, our unity is our power, and when people are coming to a city to or whatever they want to do to see how people come together is something that is stronger than any words that we can say."

Drug arrests up

Police said arrests for drug offenses are also up by 16% overall from 1,247 in 2024 to 1,450 in 2025. 

Felony drug arrests have increased 13% from 788 in 2024 to 889 this year. 

But open-air drug markets remain a challenge. A mass overdose earlier this year in Penn North drew national attention.

"There are so many open-air drug markets in the city," BPD Commissioner Richard Worley told a city council committee this week. "Some have been operating for 20 or 30 years. We're not going to be able to shut down every one."

The president has shown no sign that he is backing down from targeting major cities led by Democrats.

"We'll do a few at a time," he told FOX News Friday morning. "We're going to straighten out the crime in these cities."

While Governor Moore has pushed back on Trump's National Guard proposal, he is bringing in Maryland State Police to assist the city with crime prevention efforts. 

"You are never going to militarize your way into safe streets," the governor said last week ahead of launching his reelection campaign.