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Disrupting cycles of violence with civil legal aid partnerships

Homicide is the leading cause of death for young African-American men (ages 15-34) in the United States; they are six times more likely to die by homicide than their white counterparts. Most of these homicides are caused by firearms. 348 people died by homicide, and 771 people were non-fatally shot in Baltimore City in 2019, […]

Cell phone with cracked screen lying in grass with police safety tape in foreground

ROAR aids in legal victory requiring Baltimore Police Department to stop illegal property seizures from crime victims

Today, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, alongside co-counsel at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, announced the settlement of a class action lawsuit with the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) in Cottman vs. Baltimore Police Department, a case alleging that the department’s practice of searching and seizing the personal property of shooting victims violates […]

Governor Wes Moore and community leaders smiling.

Transformational reform to victim compensation program signed into law

On Thursday, May 16, Lydia Watts of ROAR, along with colleagues from many of our area’s victim’s services organizations, were on hand to witness Governor Moore officially sign the Victim Compensation Reform Act of 2024 into law. Once implemented, this will remove insurmountable barriers and delays that have prevented far too many crime victims from […]

Gov. Wes Moore signs budget, public safety and juvenile justice bills

Maryland lawmakers pass ‘transformational reform’ to compensation for crime victims

By Dylan Segelbaum, reprinted by permission from The Baltimore Banner. Photo by Kylie Cooper for The Baltimore Banner. Maryland lawmakers have passed a bill to revamp the system for victim compensation in the state; changes advocates say will not only help survivors of crime and their families, but improve public safety. The Victim Compensation Reform […]

Black woman with short hair and serious expression holding a framed photo of two men

Many crime victims are denied compensation in Maryland. A bill would overhaul the process.

By Dylan Segelbaum, Reprinted by permission from The Baltimore Banner. Photo by Wesley Lapointe for the Baltimore Banner. Deborah Haskins used to think that homicide happened to other families. Then, in 2013, Haskins’ son, Joseph, 20, whom family members called “JoJo,” was fatally shot during a home invasion in Baltimore. Her nephew, Reuben, 24, was […]

ROAR Center Peer Healing Circle: A new video shows how Black men are helping each other heal from the trauma of gun violence

Gun violence is the leading cause of death for young Black men in Baltimore City—and across America. Baltimore City’s homicide rate is ten times the national average. Despite these grim statistics, governmental systems in Baltimore City and elsewhere have primarily treated gun violence and homicide among Black men as a criminal issue rather than a […]

Outline of body on chalkboard background

ROAR urges passage of Criminal Injuries Compensation Board Reform Act

This week, ROAR Executive Director Lydia Watts testified before both the Maryland House and Senate urging legislators to support the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board Reform Act. Read her testimony: “I am here as the executive director of The Rebuild, Overcome, and Rise (ROAR) Center at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, representing the interests of the […]