DOWN 32% SINCE 2021. AND THE U.S. ATTORNEY SAYS THAT THEY ARE TRENDING DOWNWARD. AND HE SAYS THAT IS GREAT NEWS. HE TELLS US THAT IT’S ALL ABOUT WORKING ON THE SAME MISSION TOGETHER. IT’S ALSO ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY AND JUSTICE. HOW PROUD ARE YOU OF THIS PARTNERSHIP? I’M ENORMOUSLY PROUD OF IT. I MEAN, THIS IS THIS IS OUR GOAL. THIS IS OUR NUMBER ONE MISSION TO KEEP COMMUNITIES SAFE, TO KEEP THE NATION SAFE. U.S. ATTORNEY ERIC BARON SAYS MARYLAND’S 2024 VIOLENT CRIME NUMBERS SHOW SIGNIFICANT REDUCTIONS IN HOMICIDES AND NONFATAL SHOOTINGS. HE SAYS IT PROVES TEAM BUILDING AND COLLABORATION AMONG FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES AND COMMUNITY GROUPS IS WORKING. EVERYONE HAS HAD A ROLE IN THIS, AND WE COULDN’T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT THEM. WE HAVE A LOT MORE TO GO, YOU KNOW, LAST YEAR AROUND THIS TIME, YOU KNOW, I POSED THE QUESTION OF WHETHER THIS WAS SUSTAINABLE. AND I THINK IT IT CERTAINLY IS SUSTAINABLE FROM A CARJACKING TASK FORCE TO A STRIKE FORCE FOCUSED ON DRUGS, GUN VIOLENCE AND GUN TRAFFICKING. THE U.S. ATTORNEY SAYS HIS OFFICE PROVIDES LEADERSHIP. HE SAYS THEY COLLABORATE WITH OTHER AGENCIES LOOKING FOR PATTERNS AND TRENDS. ONE OF THE BIGGEST EFFORTS LAST NOVEMBER, OPERATION TORNADO ALLEY, ALONG WITH BALTIMORE CITY POLICE THAT FOCUSED ON A VIOLENT GANG. THE INVESTIGATION GREW TO INCLUDE THE CITY STATE’S ATTORNEY, FEDERAL AGENTS, BALTIMORE COUNTY AND ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY POLICE. IT LED TO DOZENS OF ARRESTS AND THE TAKEDOWN OF FOUR CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS. OFFICERS CONFISCATED WEAPONS AND DRUGS. THESE THINGS COME ABOUT BECAUSE THE VIOLENCE IS OUT THERE. SO THESE FIREARMS MUST BE SOMEWHERE AND PEOPLE ARE USING THEM. AND SO IT’S UP TO US TO BE AS STRATEGIC AS WE POSSIBLY CAN. AND DETERMINE WHO SPECIFICALLY IS DRIVING THE VIOLENCE AND HOW DO WE BUILD A CASE AGAINST THEM. AND THAT’S WHAT HAPPENED HERE. BARON MENTIONS BALTIMORE’S HOMICIDE NUMBERS, SAYING THEY ARE ALSO DOWN. 201 RECORDED LAST YEAR. THOSE ARE LIVES. THOSE ARE FAMILIES BROKEN. SO THAT MISSION CONTINUES. WE’RE TRENDING IN A GREAT DIRECTION, BUT WE HAVE MORE WORK TO DO WITH THE CHANGING ADMINISTRATION IN WASHINGTON. WE DID ASK ERIC BARON ABOUT HIS FUTURE AS U.S. ATTORNEY FOR MARYLAND. HE DECLINED TO COMMENT, BUT DID TALK ABOUT THE OFFICE’S FUTURE. THE PUBLIC IS DEPENDING ON US TO DO THE WORK THAT WE’RE DOING NOW MORE THAN EVER, SO THAT’S WHAT WE WILL CONTINUE TO DO NOW, BARON SAYS HE ALSO ORDERED ALL ASSISTANT U.S. ATTORNEYS IN HIS OFFICE TO PROSECUTE GUN CASES, INCLUDING HIM. HE SAYS HIS CASE ENDED IN A CONVICTION, AND IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS, HE PLANS TO BE PART OF A PROSECUTION TEAM ON A CARES ACT FRAUD CASE. REPORTING FROM T