With some potential causes of crime in Dundalk identified, law enforcement officers can offer a perspective into their duties of protecting and serving areas afflicted with crime.
To understand crime through an officer’s point of view, one has to account for the amount of crime an area has already seen.
Last year, Dundalk accounted for almost 10 percent of all crime in Baltimore County with approximately 3,267 cases. Perhaps more astounding is the fact that juveniles commit 40 percent of violent crimes in Dundalk.
According to the National Institute of Justice, violent crime is a category comprised of offenses that include rape and sexual assault, robbery, assault and murder.
“I’d look into the lack of consequences the juvenile system gives out to children,” one school resource officer (SRO) in the county said. “If people don’t fear a consequence for their actions, then they’re not going to be deterred from doing that action.”
This SRO has been with Baltimore County’s police force for over 15 years, and has been serving as a resource officer at a local school for more than 5 of those years.
Last year, minors were responsible for over 400 assault cases in Dundalk and almost 100 theft cases in the area.
Local school parents have pressured Baltimore County Public Schools in being more transparent about youth violence in schools. Parents say they don’t believe that problem students are being punished; school officials are not allowed to provide information about a student’s disciplinary record to anyone but the student’s own parents.
“You can’t get a kid out of school unless they are an imminent threat to himself and others,” the SRO said. “It’s this big blanket statement schools gives, so kids are coming in fighting constantly, bringing in weapons, kids are bringing in large quantities of drug — and other kids see this.”
There have been town halls, school meetings and virtual presentations in which school officials have communicated with parents and relay information on violence in school buildings.
According to school officials, violent behaviors in high schools and elementary schools were down 15 percent last year compared to 2021.
The resource officer says the lack of accountability and consequences can trickle down to the juvenile system, where he blames the pandemic as a major factor.
Baltimore County’s website admits its Circuit Court has experienced “significantly increased docket demands associated with handling misdemeanor criminal matters,” which means misdemeanor dockets are often overloaded, resulting in trial delays.
“It’s all a money and numbers game — there’s not enough people, not enough spaces, not enough jails, not enough juvenile facilities,” an officer said. “Juveniles commit a crime and they’re back on the street within hours.”
According to county prison data, there is an approximate 1,203 jail population and prison population of over 3,000 inmates held at the Baltimore County Department of Corrections.
The impact criminal justice reform has had locally is becoming a common argument both residents and officers use to explain the prevalence of crime.
“No one wants to do this job anymore just because a lot of our rights are slowly being taken away,” the SRO said.
In Baltimore County, a police accountability board was put in place last year as part of the Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021. A panel of nine civilians appointed by the county executive are tasked to make policing-improvement recommendations.
“A strong relationship between law enforcement and the communities they serve is vital, and accountability is fundamental in building trust,” County Executive John Olszewski Jr. said in a news release.
The Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021 creates new procedures for investigating police officers accused of misconduct, repealing the Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights (LEOBR). Maryland was the first state to repeal its LEOBR, which provided special protections to officers during disciplinary investigations.
Meanwhile, the police force has 215 vacancies out of nearly 1,961 positions, according to the Baltimore County Police Department.
“Everybody’s retiring and no one wants to do the job, so we can’t find qualified people it makes it difficult,” the resource officer said. “Then, when you can’t find qualified people what do you do? We’re hiring people that 15 years ago we wouldn’t have interviewed.”
As Baltimore County has implemented police reform measures passed by the General Assembly, the local government has expanded spending on public safety.
Baltimore County has also increased its spending on public safety for the past three years, according to the County’s open budget data. The county had public safety budget of $239.80 million in 2020 before upping the total to $264.29 million in 2021 — and in 2022, Baltimore County increased its public safety budget again to a total of $267.89 million.
Interim Police Chief Dennis Delp has said that morale in the Baltimore County Police Department is the lowest he’s ever seen it. The local Fraternal Order of Police lodge voted “No Confidence” in his predecessor, Melissa Hyatt, in May of last year. Olszewski announced Hyatt’s departure in November, and Delp succeeded her in December.
Morale is low among police officers nationwide. A 2021 survey by the Police Executive Research Forum found a significant increase in officers leaving the force. On average, resignations are up 18%, while police officers are retiring at historic rates: among agencies that employ more than 500 officers, there was a 27% increase in retirements.
In its recruitment efforts, the Baltimore County Police Department is advertising a $10,000 signing bonus to entry-level and lateral officers who join the force.
