Megan Thompson

Professor Theophile-LaFond
COMM 108
6 October 2017
How to Understand Crime in Maryland

General Purpose: To inform the audience.

Specific Purpose: To inform the audience about crimes in Maryland and how to prevent them

from occurring.

Attention Grabber: Have you ever wondered what goes on in the unknown part of the city?

Maybe people are part of the poor part in town.

Causes of crime in Rockville and Baltimore include hush incidents, high bail amount for

held criminals and lack of relationship with the police. I am going to talk to you about cases that

challenged the police and crime incidents. They include:

Freddie Gray police brutality in Baltimore

Increase in Methadone drug addiction in Baltimore

Man threatens to bomb people in Baltimore

As many of you know, crime is a central part of any city. How we tackle the issue shows

our commitment to a fairer society.To stop crimes we should increase involvement in the

community and promote safe behavior.

What happened in the Freddie Gray incident? He was stung by Police officers when

arrested which led to a coma.

Gilmore, Scott. (2015)

 Freddie Gray, the Day after the Night. P.42-42 October 3 2017.

There are also increase in homicide rates in Baltimore Maryland. Black people are the

victims of crimes because they are more active in criminal activity. According to civil

liberties group, they stopped about 120,000 people finding knives and guns out of 600,000

citizens.

I. When Freddie Gray was arrested, the police stomped and stung him. However, a week

after he was in a coma. The Justice department launched an investigation and six police

officers were suspended. This shows how when community strengthens ties with police,

they will experience less arrests.

While the incident serious, police relations are bettering for the community.

II. Methadone is a drug used to treat withdrawal symptoms from opioid and heroin

addictions. Increased usage is linked to more crime in Baltimore. Studies show that

addiction decreases when addicts are in treatment. According to the Baltimore AIDS

Linked to the Intravenous Experience (ALIVE), it takes 9 years for long-term treatment

for long-term cessation in drug addicts.

Boyd et al. 2012. Methadone Treatment Centers and Crime. Addiction. Accessed

6 October 2017.

Drug addictions can shake a family apart. There are also single criminal activity that

capture news attention.

III. A man threatened to bomb people in Baltimore because of criminal behavior. This man

was 25 years old, and he threatened at a television station. Young people are increasingly
 threatening others because of hate and power. To stop crime, we should build stronger

relationships with the police.

Blinder, A. 2016. A Man is Wounded After a Standoff in Baltimore. New York

Times. Accessed 6 October 2017.

This summer during my internship at the Office of the Public Defender, I learnt

bail amounts are high for the Baltimore community. African-American community

therefore deals with more money to pay with less resources. We need to elect officials

who represent our ideals so an equal time can be given to criminals.

To end, crime is caused by a lack of relationships with the police, harsh laws against people

and hush incidents. Martin Luther King Jr. Said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice

everywhere".

Works Cited

Gilmore, S. (2015)

Freddie Gray, the Day after the Night. P.42-42 October 3 2017.

Boyd et al. 2012. Methadone Treatment Centers and Crime. Addiction. Accessed

6 October 2017.

Blinder, A. 2016. A Man is Wounded After a Standoff in Baltimore. New York

Times. Accessed 6 October 2017.

 Ideal Audience

My ideal audience is a group of 18 to 25 year old college aged students pursuing creative

majors. They have a positive attitude and are an equal mix of races. More women than men

populate the audience when I look around. To avoid crime, they should not have a criminal

record and strongly believe in justice. They should listen actively by asking me questions and

vice versa. Their values include equality for all people and to gain a good education in college.

This young group of students will ensure crime is prevented for the future.