Federal funding cuts by the Trump administration have jeopardised community-based violence intervention programmes that experts say were instrumental in driving down homicide rates across the United States. In April 2025, more than $800 million in grants from the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs were withdrawn, with the department stating it would instead focus on prosecuting criminals.
Community programmes, which employ trained mediators to defuse conflicts and prevent shootings, have been shown to reduce violence more effectively than enforcement alone, advocates argue. Shani Buggs, an assistant professor at the University of California, Davis, described the cuts as “beyond disheartening”, noting that homicides had fallen by 25% in 2025 compared with 2019, according to the non-partisan Council on Criminal Justice.
The Trump administration has attributed the decline to its own tough-on-crime policies, including the deployment of National Guard troops to several cities. However, experts point out that the downward trend began under President Joe Biden and continued in cities that did not receive troop deployments, such as Baltimore, Buffalo and Salt Lake City, where crime fell by more than 40%.
Baltimore, which saw the largest homicide rate decrease among 35 cities studied, had its grants terminated by the Trump administration, along with other organisations like the Urban Peace Institute in Los Angeles. Buggs said the city’s success demonstrated “what happens when you pour resources into a strategic plan focused on a comprehensive approach to public safety”.
The cuts come despite the earlier bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which provided $250 million for violence intervention. Critics warn that withdrawing funding could reverse the gains made, echoing concerns from the Covid-19 pandemic era, when a 30% surge in murders followed the closure of schools and workplaces in high-poverty neighbourhoods.
