Community Safety

Every day as I drive to my office at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, I pass homes with yard signs stating “Black Lives Matter and “I heart Ferguson,” but also, “We must stop killing each other,” a nod to the constant human stress, trauma and, ultimately, shortened life expectancy in these communities.

Three-and-a-half-year-old Dylan was tiny, feisty and freckled with tousled blond hair. His mom brought him to the pediatric clinic because he had tried to smother his 2-week-old sister. She didn’t know what to do with him, and frankly neither did we. It was 5 p.m. and the clinic was closing.

In the wake of Freddie Gray’s death, Baltimore residents took to the streets in protest. The best media coverage showed how years of neglect have crippled West Baltimore economies, fostered distrust and violence, and put a long, healthy life entirely out of reach for many residents, Gray included.

New data show that teens and young adults in the ER for an assault injury were 40 percent more likely than their peers to be involved in gun violence over the next two years. That makes such ER visits a big opportunity for those working to interrupt the cycle of youth gun violence.

Laura Starecheski's recent NPR series on childhood adversity and trauma is an essential listen for those interested in how childhood events can shape long-term health. Starecheski recently spoke to Reporting on Health about how she reported the stories and what she learned along the way.

Two Herald reporters are being honored with the Selden Ring Award this week for their "Innocents Lost" series that chronicled the abuse and neglect deaths of 477 Florida children. Here they share how they reported the project.

A documentary premiering on PBS on Monday tracks the lives of Chicago teens struggling to regain their footing and stay in school after their home lives have fallen apart. The film's three heart-wrenching human stories give deeper meaning to the abstractions of statistics.

After an onslaught of media reports suggesting that depression was the cause of the Germanwings tragedy, people are too readily blaming mental illness as the enemy of public safety. That can make it harder for others to overcome the stigma associated with mental illness.

In Baltimore, violence has marred countless lives. But Baltimore Sun reporter Andrea McDaniels wanted to explore the deeper, long-lasting effects of violence. Her extended reporting crystalized in an award-winning three-part series. Here she shares the challenges she faced and lessons learned.

"Sure, I knew hundreds of residents died in homicides or were hurt and even disabled during assaults,” said McDaniels. "But I wondered if there was something deeper going on that needed to be explored.”