On February 27, more than 20 residents joined Greenbelt police officers in a community meeting at the Community Center to discuss crime trends and prevention, juvenile crime and upcoming events. Other topics raised included traffic problems during road repair, dangerous vehicle exhibitions and funding bottlenecks.
Juvenile Offenders
Much discussion focused on juveniles who repeatedly break the law and receive only light consequences for their actions (usually the maximum sentence for a juvenile offender is probation with the family).
Some bills pending before the Maryland General Assembly seek to address the problem of repeat juvenile offenders (HB814, SB744, SB0792). However, the legislation leaves many issues unresolved, for example, at what age juveniles can understand the consequences of their actions and what environment would foster that understanding of consequences if not the home or detention environment. It was generally agreed that besides the police enforcing the law, schools must confront rising truancy, legislation must be funded to be effective and parents need support in holding their children accountable for their actions.
Rising Crime Rates
Police Chief Richard Bowers identified as an especially concerning issue: the rising assaults on law enforcement officers during service calls. There were 12 assaults in 2023, up from two or three assaults in 2022. In 2023 the department had 33,000 calls for service and 500 arrests and only 10 use-of-force actions in all those calls. Across Maryland, the rate for most types of crime is rising. In Greenbelt, there was an overall 43 percent increase in crime in 2023 citywide. Leading the increase is automobile theft which was up 263 percent over 2022. In 2023, robberies were up 46 percent. Juvenile arrests were up 212 percent. All these incidents are included in the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) data which include theft, rape, robbery, murder and aggravated assault and totaled over 1,700 crimes in 2023. The city’s population has increased but not enough to account for those high numbers.
This year, only six weeks in, compared to the same six-week period last year, automobile theft is down 50 percent and theft is down 254 percent but robberies are up 600 percent. These increasing calls for service and crime put additional work on police officers. Fortunately, the police department has additional support through partnership with the Prince George’s County Police Department and the Maryland State Police. With extra patrols and partnerships, the toll on the city’s police staff is heavy but the crime numbers are coming down. One problem that remains is theft and armed robbery taking place around Greenbelt Middle School, frequently for items like shoes.
Crisis Intervention
The police Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) managed 500 crisis calls last year with 20 staff, not counting follow-up calls. Bowers considers this co-responder program, where police are paired with a crisis intervention staff person, to be a success. When appropriate, CIT partners with the city’s CARES program to help find or provide interventions for the families, but CIT Supervisor Rachel Tobin reported a lack of systemwide resources for parents.
CARES provides a Youth Services Bureau, but funding for it from the state has been reduced. In this Maryland General Assembly session, bill HB1136, if passed, would restore some of the needed funding for the Youth Services Bureau.
Department Composition
Eunice Pierre from the Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) asked Bowers to discuss diversity hiring in the police department. Bowers and Deputy Chief Tim White produced the following statistics for the 53 sworn police officers: 58 percent are people of color, 42 percent are white, and by gender, 84 percent are male and 16 percent female. Front-line supervisors are 33 percent white and 66 percent people of color (breakdown by gender was not shared).
Vehicle Exhibitions
Resident John Mills asked about the incident on Hanover Parkway where a mass of cars came together and would not disperse (see Street Takeover by Cars in the February 15 issue). Police from all over had to come to disperse the cars but no one was arrested. Greenbelt police officer Captain Jermaine Gulledge explained that in a crisis, the best response is to ensure safety. He noted there were cars doing dangerous stunts and
endangering people by shooting fireworks. The police did get everyone out safely and cleared the area – the nuisance cars then went into Anne Arundel County. Bills in the Maryland General Assembly (HB0601/SB0442) are addressing exhibition behavior and loud, dangerous driving.
Greenbelt East Paving
Mary Thomas from PSAC spoke about the lack of traffic control during the paving and construction on Greenbelt Road. She shared that four-way gridlock caused traffic to wait for an excessive amount of time. She had waited 10 minutes at an intersection to get from Greenway Center to Hanover Parkway. Greenbelt Police Department has been in touch with the state police about the traffic situation but noted the priority for the state police is ensuring the safety and protection of the highway workers. Mayor Emmett Jordan expressed optimism that the work will be completed soon as the street is now completely ground down and ready for paving.
Funding for Legislation
City Manager Josué Salmerón appreciated the police department holding community meetings. He stressed that legislation with full funding was critical to keep Greenbelt safe and juveniles protected as they grow.
Attendee Questions
Resident and former city councilmember Judith Davis asked if calls for service included every call, both emergency and non-emergency calls. Bowers confirmed the calls included every kind of call, including traffic stops and animal control. Bowers did not have statistics on repeat offenders per a question from Davis.
Resident Connie Davis asked what the times for peak crime activity are. Bowers responded 3 to 11 p.m. are high crime hours.
Answering a question from PSAC Chair Peggy Higgins, Bowers noted that 3,300 of the 33,000 calls for service were traffic stops.
Resident Carolyn Lambright-Davis asked if police are engaging with the community by getting out of their cars and talking with residents. Bowers mentioned the work of Franklin Park Partnership Officer Erick Alvarez in running a one-week program for mentoring children. Other officers spend their own money to buy food and school supplies for kids as they head home after school, he added.
Information on all the Maryland State Assembly bills can be found at mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite under the Legislation heading by typing the bill number (example: HB0601) into the search box.