Baltimore 'violence interrupter' arrested for attempted murder

A worker with a Baltimore program that aims to prevent gun violence has been charged with attempted murder for allegedly carrying out a shooting in Northwest Baltimore on Sunday night, leaving a man hospitalized.

While patrolling in the Central Park Heights neighborhood at around 7:25 pm on Sunday, Northern District police officers heard gunshots in the 4400 block of Park Heights Avenue. Upon a search of the area, they discovered a 40-year-old man suffering from a gunshot wound, per the Baltimore Sun. The man was transported to a local hospital for treatment.

The suspect, 51-year-old Antoine Burton, was located shortly after around a quarter of a mile away. He has been taken to the Central Booking Intake Facility and is facing charges that include attempted first-degree murder and handgun violations, per the Baltimore Police Department.

Burton is a worker with Baltimore City’s Safe Streets program. The program was established in 2007 by the city as an "evidence-based, public health program to reduce gun violence."

"Safe Streets outreach workers and violence interrupters work on the frontlines to put themselves in front of a firearm to de-escalate situations and mediate conflict. Safe Streets staff members are screened, interviewed, and selected to work in specific target areas within the city in which they are identified as credible messengers. Safe Streets team members can connect and build rapport with individuals who are classified as high-risk, and connect them to life-sustaining resources," the program’s website states.

Prior to Sunday night, in which a second shooting occurred in the same neighborhood, with a 20-year-old man being killed and two other people being hospitalized, the Park Heights zone of the Safe Streets program had gone over 500 days without a homicide, the longest stretch of any Safe Streets zone.

Following Burton’s arrest, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said the worker’s actions were a "disgrace." He said the shooting was "an isolated incident that should not be used to undermine the proven work that Safe Streets does." He added that Burton "has failed to live up to our standards for frontline community violence intervention staff and violated the trust that is at the very core of what makes violence intervention work overwhelmingly successful."

"Nobody should ever resort to violence to resolve conflict, especially someone tasked with promoting peace," he said.