BALTIMORE — As gun violence in Baltimore continues to decline after years of bloodshed, a historically troubled neighborhood in the city’s southwest corner is celebrating a long-awaited victory: zero homicides in more than a year.

The numbers are especially significant for the Brooklyn community, where a mass shootings in July 2023, he crashed an annual summer party, leaving two people dead and 28 others injured in the courtyard of an old public housing complex. The majority VICTIMS they were teenagers and young adults.

In the wake of the tragedy, the city’s flagship Safe Streets anti-violence program has stepped up its work in the area, and officials say the efforts have paid off. On Tuesday afternoon, residents and city leaders gathered near the site of the mass shooting to mark one year of progress.

“This is not just a Safe Streets achievement. It’s a testament to Brooklyn’s resilience and community strength,” said Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott. “This is a community that has been disinvested, neglected and ignored for a long, long time. But together, collectively, we say enough is enough.”

Citywide, homicides are down about 24 percent from this time last year. That’s over an approx 20% decrease in 2023when Baltimore saw fewer than 300 homicides for the first time in nearly a decade, ending a surge that began in 2015 after the death of Freddie Gray and widespread civil unrest.

Violent crime has, too decreased nationally after growing during the pandemic.

Baltimore’s Safe Streets program has 10 offices located in some of the city’s most dangerous neighborhoods. It was launched in 2007 and expanded in recent years under Scott’s administration, which often pledged to treat violence as a public health crisis and address its root causes.

Safe Streets focuses on reducing conflict by employing mediators with credibility and street knowledge. It is inherently dangerous work because it forms close relationships with the individuals most at risk of becoming either perpetrators or victims of gun violence. Officials said reaching out to young people is critical.

Adanus Sprillium, 22, said he recently enrolled in a residential job training program that was recommended by Safe Streets workers in Brooklyn. He had his first GED class last week. Sprillium said he previously struggled with drug addiction and homelessness.

“I probably would have ended up dead or in jail,” he said.

A community survey conducted in the weeks after the mass shooting in Brooklyn found that many neighborhood residents placed more trust in Safe Streets than Baltimore police, local schools, nonprofits and other institutions, according to city officials. Only neighborhood churches ranked higher.

Even so, the presence of Safe Streets workers during the block party was not enough to prevent it from eventually devolving into chaos and bloodshed.

Baltimore police received harsh criticism for their response to the event. One report indicated potential bias by the officer after finding police ignored several warning signs and failed to take proactive measures in the hours before gunfire broke out. Critics have questioned whether police would have responded differently if the shooting had taken place in a more affluent area.

The department announced disciplinary charges against a dozen officers earlier this year.

Five teenagers were arrested about the shooting. Four of them have since pleaded guilty to various charges.

Sean Wees, director of Safe Streets’ Brooklyn site, said many staff members have deep roots in the community. The team doubled down on promoting safety and connecting residents with services in response to the shooting. But Wees said there is still work to do.

“We are working to promote peace and progress here in Brooklyn,” he said during Tuesday’s meeting. “We cannot stop until this kind of ceremony is no longer necessary – until peace is the standard and not a series measured in days or months.”