[JURIST] Interim Baltimore City Police Commissioner Kevin Davis [appointment release] on Monday met with officials from five federal law enforcement agencies to begin a program to address the recent increase of homicides in the city. The so-called B-FED partnership [Baltimore Sun report] will involve the FBI, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), US Marshals Service, US Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) [official websites], and each will send agents to embed themselves in the Baltimore homicide unit to work directly with local police. The last three months have seen 60 percent of Baltimore’s 192 homicides this year, making May through July the deadliest three months in Baltimore’s history since 1970. Baltimore City Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake [official website] stated [Baltimore Sun video], “If we are not working together – the community and the police – none of us will see the safe city that we want to see.”

The arrest and death of Freddie Gray, followed by the indictment of six Baltimore police officers [JURIST report] involved in his arrest in May, marked the beginning of the surge in homicides. Gray’s arrest and death led to widespread protests and civil disorder in the city of Baltimore. In April Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] urged Baltimore police to exercise restraint [JURIST report] during protests, prioritize non-violent means and limit the use of force. Also in April, amidst national concern about police behavior, the US Department of Justice [official website] announced a $20 million body camera grant [press release] program that includes training, technical assistance and evaluation to accompany $17 million for local law enforcement agencies to purchase body-worn cameras.