Baltimore

Once again this year, the Brennan Center for Justice has analyzed violent crime stats from the 30 largest cities in America to provide some insight on national trends.  Not surprisingly, this year's report has is full of more bad news for the residents of cities like Baltimore and Chicago that have experienced devastating spikes in homicides over the past two years.

With its surging violence and failing public schools, being a Baltimore resident these days doesn't seem to be that enticing a proposition.  Unfortunately, crumbling water infrastructure is only adding to the agony of residents that occupy what increasingly looks like a failed city.  As The Baltimore Sun notes today, a new study conducted by economist Roger Colton found that a series of water bill hikes, an effort designed to raise money to repair the city's crumbling water infrastructure, has left the poorest residents facing bills equal to 20% of their monthly income.

Under the guise of stopping violent crime, a County Commissioner in Cook County, Illinois, went to New York City late last week to request that the United Nations deploy foreign troops in Chicago to tackle the city’s “quiet genocide.”

Police in Baltimore City have recovered a “substantial amount” of fentanyl from an early Tuesday morning raid at a corner store on the war-torn streets of West Baltimore.

Police report two unidentified people were taken into custody at the time of the raid with pending charges. Police served a search and seizure warrant at the store after a concerned resident in the neighborhood tipped off police.