Federal Hill residents raise safety concerns during community walk with police officers

BALTIMORE -- Residents in Baltimore's Federal Hill neighborhood are on a mission to make the community safer. This year, the Federal Hill Neighborhood Association started a walk to address concerns with Baltimore Police Department.

On Friday at 5 p.m., about a dozen or more residents began the community walk at Federal Hill Park with a few officers.

"The community is supportive of trying to make this a safer place for everyone and we're really wholeheartedly partnering with the police department to try to leverage all our resources," FHNA Public Safety Chair, Nigel Crocombe said.

Some of those resources include a network of cameras. The city is installing nine of these new Citiwatch cameras in the neighborhood.

Residents can also opt-in to register their private devices, such as a Ring camera, with the 'South Baltimore Camera Network'.

"That's a volunteer network of 250 households and that enables us to work in partnership with BPD to provide footage, and that footage has been very helpful in solving some recent crimes," Crocombe said.

One of those recent crimes was a rape

According to Crocombe, the crime happened near Hall Alley and Cross Street.

On June 22, 2024, officers were advised that a 27-year-old female was physically and sexually assaulted by an unidentified male in the 1100 block of Battery Avenue.

The victim had managed to escape from the suspect and had called for help.

Detectives were notified and took control over the investigation where they identified Thomas Jackson, 29-years-old, as a suspect.

A week later, officials arrested Jackson and transported him to the Central Booking Intake Facility, where he was charged with first-degree rape.

"That's a place where neighbors coming together, providing that footage, working together with the police department hand-and-hand led to a pretty rapid arrest," Crocombe said.

Residents on the walk also voiced concerns about quality of life crimes

"Dirt bikes: that's an issue that I'm curious about why we as a community can't figure out solutions to provide those people with some opportunities to enjoy what they do but do it in ways that are a little safer," James Woody said.

The community walks in Federal Hill began four months ago, according to Crocombe.

Residents who participated in the walk said progress has been made during that time to address issues.

"I'm a person who grew up in an era where police officers actually walked the streets and developed relationships with community members and I'd love to see more of that and I think we're starting to see some of that," Woody said.