Data & API

Downloads

Methodology

Data sources

• Warrant filings — case numbers were identified via the Maryland Eviction Dashboard, then individual case records were downloaded from Maryland Case Search (District Court, Baltimore City, December 2024). Each row is one warrant of restitution request.
• Eviction execution — identified by a "Warrant of Restitution — Return of Service — Evicted" docket entry on the same case.
• SDAT parcel data — Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation real property file. Used to resolve court plaintiff names to deed-of-record property owners.
• Demographic indicators — BNIA Vital Signs 2023. Eviction rate, racial composition, income, and unemployment by Community Statistical Area.

Landlord identity resolution

The same landlord often files under different LLC names or management company names. To deduplicate, each warrant's geocoded tenant address was spatially joined (nearest-neighbour, ≤ 50 m) to SDAT rental parcels. The deed-of-record owner (sdat_owner) is the dominant parcel match across all of a plaintiff's warrants. landlord_master.csv carries both the court name and the resolved SDAT owner so you can group either way.

CSA assignment

Each warrant is assigned to a Community Statistical Area via the tenant address census tract, using the Maryland Census tract-to-CSA 2010 crosswalk. Warrants where geocoding failed or no crosswalk match existed (~4%) are excluded from CSA-level analysis but included in citywide totals.

API

All endpoints return JSON. No authentication required. CORS headers included.

GET /api/csa

{
  "data": [
    {
      "csa": "Greenmount East",
      "slug": "greenmount-east",
      "eviction_count": 87,
      "eviction_rate_per_1k_residents": 28.1,
      "pct_black_non_hisp": 92.3,
      "median_hh_income": 24500,
      "ownership_concentration_pct": 61.2,
      ...
    }
  ]
}

GET /api/csa/greenmount-east

{
  "csa": "Greenmount East",
  "slug": "greenmount-east",
  "eviction_rate_per_1k_residents": 28.1,
  ...
  "top_landlords": [
    { "plaintiff": "Waverly Apts Co", "warrant_count": 12, "eviction_count": 1 }
  ]
}

GET /api/cases?csa=Greenmount+East&page=1

{
  "data": [
    {
      "case_id": "0801SP0012345",
      "case_type": "Failure to Pay Rent",
      "filing_date": "2024-12-03",
      "plaintiff": "Waverly Apts Co",
      "address": "E 25th St 21218",
      "csa": "Greenmount East",
      "judgment": "Possession",
      "eviction_executed": false,
      "defendant_hash": "a3f7c2d1..."
    }
  ],
  "pagination": { "page": 1, "limit": 25, "total": 87 }
}

GET /api/cases/0801SP0012345

{
  "case_id": "0801SP0012345",
  ...
  "details": {
    "parties": [
      { "role": "Plaintiff", "name": "Waverly Apts Co" },
      { "role": "Defendant", "name": "[REDACTED:a3f7c2d1...]" }
    ],
    "docket_entries": [ ... ],
    "judgment": { "type": "Possession", "date": "2024-12-15", "in_favor_of": "Plaintiff" }
  }
}

Privacy & Sanitization

• Tenant names are never stored or returned in any API response or download. They are hashed at ingest time.
• Addresses are truncated to street name + zip code. No house numbers are published.
• Plaintiff (landlord) names are published — they are the plaintiff of record in a public court filing.
• Data covers December 2024 eviction warrant filings only.