BALTIMORE, Md. — Five people were killed and as many as 10 others were injured in multiple shootings across Baltimore in less than 48 hours, prompting Mayor Brandon Scott to meet with police command staff and call for renewed efforts to prevent retaliatory violence.
Scott said the department needs to refocus on small groups of people believed to be responsible for violence in city neighborhoods. He urged police leaders to intensify their efforts to identify those involved and prevent further shootings.
“We cannot have another two weeks like the two weeks we’ve been having,” Scott said.
The response also involves community violence prevention workers who have experienced the devastating effects of gun violence firsthand. Among them is Nicole Warren, a site coordinator for Safe Streets Sandtown, who has spent years helping families and neighborhoods affected by shootings.
“Let’s do something now before the knock comes on your door,” Warren told WJZ reporter Tara Lynch.
Baltimore Community Worker Turns Personal Loss Into Violence Prevention
Warren knows the pain of losing a loved one to gun violence. In 2018, her 17-year-old son was killed in a shooting. Since then, she has dedicated herself to helping other families avoid a similar loss.
“I felt like I was on an island by myself, and to the God that I serve, I kept praying, and I said, ‘Just get me through,’” Warren said.
She recalled how Safe Streets volunteers supported her after her son’s death and explained why she now works to provide that same support to others.
“I had a lot of orange [Safe Streets volunteers] show up for me. That’s why I bring a lot of orange to show up for others,” she said.
Warren has worked with Safe Streets for nine years. On Tuesday, she walked near the 2800 block of Edmondson Avenue, speaking with business owners and residents about the violence affecting their community.
Her work comes as a series of shootings has left multiple people dead or injured in different parts of Baltimore.
West Baltimore Gas Station Shooting Leaves Two Dead
On Sunday, two people were killed and three others were injured after multiple suspects opened fire at a BP gas station in West Baltimore.
According to CBS Baltimore’s report, officers responded at approximately 10:30 p.m. and found a woman and three men suffering from gunshot wounds. Another man arrived at a hospital with gunshot wounds.
The woman and one of the men later died. The three other men were expected to survive, according to the report.
Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said investigators believed two or three shooters were involved and that high-powered rifles had been used. No arrests had been announced in connection with the shooting at the time of the report.
Earlier Sunday evening, another shooting injured three people at Pepper Liquor Store in Northwest Baltimore.
Officers responded at approximately 8:30 p.m. to the store in the 5400 block of Reisterstown Road. Police found two women, ages 26 and 22, suffering from gunshot wounds. Both were taken to a hospital in stable condition.
Investigators also learned that a 27-year-old man had arrived at a hospital with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds, according to CBS Baltimore.
Two Men Killed in Northwest Baltimore Shooting
Another shooting near Carroll Motor Fuels in the 5200 block of Muth Avenue left two men dead and a third injured.
Officers responded at approximately 4:30 p.m. and found three men who had been shot. A 24-year-old man and a 30-year-old man died, while a 21-year-old man was taken to a hospital in stable condition, according to CBS Baltimore’s coverage.
Video obtained exclusively by WJZ showed two men running with guns drawn near the intersection of Muth Avenue and North Forest Park Avenue before getting into a silver car and leaving the area.
A local business owner told WJZ that he had previously chased people away from his property and had considered closing his business because of the violence.
The incidents have added to concerns among residents and business owners about repeated shootings in their neighborhoods.
Mayor Brandon Scott Urges Police to Focus on Retaliatory Violence
On Tuesday, Scott called a meeting with police command staff that he described as a “talk.” During the closed-door meeting, he urged department leaders to ensure officers focused on small groups of people involved in retaliatory shootings.
“Making sure that everybody that wears the badge is bought into and understands we know the people, and we have to focus on them,” Scott said.
Baltimore police reported that 253 people had been shot in the city as of Tuesday morning in 2026, compared with 247 at the same point in 2025.
The city had recorded 101 homicides during the same period, down from 105 a year earlier, according to the figures cited in the original report.
Worley said officers were being deployed across Baltimore to disrupt groups involved in violence. He also called for a return to basic policing strategies, including vehicle stops and approaching groups gathered on street corners.
“Right now, we’ve got to stop them from shooting each other, so that we can get a grip on it,” Worley said. “We do that by more cops in the right places doing the right thing.”
Recent Shootings Add to Baltimore’s Violence Concerns
The shootings continued into Monday night, when a 39-year-old man was killed near Belair Road. According to CBS Baltimore, an officer conducting a business check in the 3200 block of Belair Road heard multiple gunshots at approximately 11 p.m. and went outside to investigate.
Two other victims, both 21-year-old men, were shot and injured.
Since mid-September, at least seven shootings across Baltimore have left multiple people dead or injured, according to the original report.
Several of the incidents have involved children and young adults. A shooting earlier this month killed a 12-year-old girl at a West Baltimore park, an incident that prompted public grief and calls for accountability from her family. CBS Baltimore reported on the family’s response.
In another mass shooting in the Winchester neighborhood of West Baltimore, an 18-year-old and a 19-year-old were killed, while two other people were wounded, according to CBS Baltimore.
The continuing violence has placed additional pressure on community safety workers, who are trying to prevent further shootings while supporting residents affected by loss and trauma.
For Warren, that work remains personal. Despite the grief and challenges, she said she intends to continue supporting her community and encouraging residents to find ways to move forward.
“Every day, is it a good day? No, it’s not, but I’m going to make the best of it, and I’m going to keep moving, and I’m going to show you how I’m living, and getting through what I went through,” Warren said.
“What can we do different? … I know we can be saved. I know we can.”
Anyone with information about the shootings is asked to contact Baltimore police at 410-396-2466 or Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7LOCKUP.