BET: How Mayor Justin Bibb Helped Cut Cleveland’s Homicide Rate by Nearly 50%

Jasmine Browley, BET

When Justin Bibb took office in 2022 at just 34 years old, he made history as the youngest Black mayor in Cleveland’s history—and the city’s first millennial mayor. But it wasn’t just his age that set him apart. It was the promise of a new kind of leadership: one grounded in lived experience, rapid innovation, and an unshakable commitment to equity.

“I’ve seen what works really well and what doesn’t,” Bibb told BET. “From losing my cousin to gun violence to watching my mom navigate job insecurity, my leadership is informed by what I’ve lived.”

Now at 38, Bibb is navigating some of the most entrenched challenges facing American cities—public safety, digital infrastructure, housing affordability—with a playbook rooted in both urgency and empathy. He’s not afraid to make bold investments, whether in youth programming or digital upgrades to Cleveland’s archaic systems. And the results are promising.

Youth Investment and Safety Reform

Among Bibb’s proudest achievements is the city’s overhaul of youth engagement and violence prevention.

This summer, more than 10,000 young Clevelanders are participating in high-quality out-of-school programs. It’s a personal priority for Bibb, who credits his church choir, Vacation Bible School, and Boys & Girls Club for keeping him off the streets as a kid. 

“When those streetlights came on, my behind was in the house,” he laughed. “I’m trying to replicate that structure and support at scale.”

Bibb’s administration also introduced a neighborhood safety endowment fund. This includes $10 million in partnership with the Cleveland Foundation to fund grassroots programming like mentoring, wrestling clubs, and violence interruption efforts. “Public safety is a group project,” he said. “Government can’t do it alone.”

The impact is already measurable. Homicides in Cleveland are down by more than 46% since Bibb took office, with a nearly 30% drop in summer homicides alone compared to the same period last year.

Innovation in City Hall

From the outside, City Hall might not seem like the most obvious place for innovation, but Bibb targeted bureaucratic stagnation on day one.

“I had this big dream of sending a welcome letter to all 8,000 employees when I got sworn in,” he said. “It took two days just to get my email set up.”

That early roadblock revealed how outdated the city’s digital infrastructure was. Some departments were still using Windows 8; others lacked email access entirely. Today, thanks to Bibb’s tech modernization push, all city employees are now on Microsoft 365 and equipped with DocuSign. Contracts are processed faster, and communication is streamlined.

“My residents don’t care about how the sausage is made; they just want results,” Bibb said. “We can’t let process be an impediment to prosperity.”

Rebuilding Trust in Policing

Like many major cities, Cleveland continues to reckon with community trust in law enforcement—particularly after the 2014 killing of 12-year-old Tamir Rice. But Bibb sees his role as leading a broader cultural shift in how cities approach safety.

“We’re not just doing police patrols. We’re bringing government to the streets,” he said.

One example is Cleveland’s neighborhood safety walks, where city departments—including police, housing, and public works—join Bibb on real-time tours of crime hotspots. 

“We’re towing abandoned cars, citing vacant lots, engaging youth—all on the spot,” he explained. “That proximity to residents builds trust.”

Internally, Cleveland police have undergone major changes. Bibb says use-of-force incidents are down, complaint rates have dropped, and new constitutional policing standards are being upheld. “Despite the chaos out of D.C., we are staying the course,” Bibb said, referencing national rollbacks to consent decree oversight. “When police show up, they must respect your rights as a tax-paying citizen. That’s non-negotiable.”

Reclaiming Cleveland’s Narrative

As a native son, Bibb isn’t just managing Cleveland, he’s rebranding it.

“This is the Cleveland era,” he said proudly. “We’re showing the nation what innovation looks like.”

From a $2 billion airport transformation to a $100 million housing fund with KeyBank and LISC, Bibb is positioning Cleveland as a hub for growth, investment, and possibility. The city is redeveloping 1,000 acres of industrial brownfields into job sites and launching a $5 billion project to make Cleveland a two-waterfront city.

“We’re tackling America’s housing crisis with modular homes and investing in the urban core,” he said. “I want Cleveland to be a first-choice city, like Chicago or D.C.”

The Stakes for Black Voters

As a millennial himself, Bibb is keenly aware of how disillusionment has shaped voter turnout, particularly among Black youth. But he’s urging constituents to resist apathy, especially at the local level.

“A lot of folks didn’t choose Kamala, didn’t choose the current president—they chose the couch,” Bibb said. “We are seeing what happens when we don’t exercise our power.”

He warns that national policy rollbacks on issues like reproductive rights, affirmative action, and the social safety net disproportionately affect Black communities.

“This job is the hardest I’ve ever had—but it’s also the most meaningful,” he said. “I’m building the Cleveland I want my family and yours to thrive in.”

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