Baltimore violence prevention worker charged in shooting, mayor calls it "a disgrace"

A worker with one of Baltimore's violence prevention groups was arrested and charged in connection with a shooting that left a man injured, according to police and the mayor. 

Antoine Burton, 51, a worker with Safe Streets, was charged with attempted first-degree murder and several handgun violations after a shooting on Sunday, June 7, in the 4400 block of Park Heights Avenue. A 40-year-old man was hurt during the incident. 

After the shooting, police arrested Burton in the 2400 block of Loyola Northway and transported him to the Central Booking facility. 

"This individual's actions are a disgrace," Mayor Brandon Scott said. "He 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."   

The mayor said the shooting was an isolated incident, "and should not be used to undermine the proven work that Safe Streets does each and every day." 

The Safe Streets program was started in 2007 in an effort to address gun violence across the city. The program uses outreach workers and violence interrupters to de-escalate violent conflict. The program has 10 sites in Baltimore, and 1,283 mediations were conducted in 2024, according to the mayor's office. 

"I am furious at the news that Antoine Burton, a Safe Streets worker with the Safe Streets Belvedere site, has been arrested following the nonfatal shooting," the mayor said.