Investigation reveals concerns with Baltimore pilot program for first

A new investigation reveals issues with SideStep, a pilot program run by Baltimore City to keep juveniles from reoffending.

The city's inspector general examined whether taxpayer dollars were being properly managed — and whether SideStep is effective— before it potentially expands citywide.

You can read a synopsis of the report here .

The investigation

Baltimore City Inspector General Isabel Mercedes Cumming told WJZ Investigates they received a tip that SideStep was not running the way it was portrayed.

That led her office to start digging into the pilot initiative that MONSE, the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, launched in West Baltimore in 2022. It ran through 2024.

SideStep aimed to help first-time juvenile offenders with an alternative to the justice sys