ECA Public Safety Task Force
July 2, 2008 Update
ICMA Report & Recommendations
On June 16, 2008, Leonard Matarese, the International City Managers’ Association (ICMA) Public Safety Services Director, began a public presentation on the ICMA’s study of the Annapolis Police Department. Time did not allow for the full presentation, which has been tentatively rescheduled for July 19, 2008, at 10 a.m. in the City Council chamber. The public is invited and encouraged to participate. Watch this website and for emails from Alderman Arnett to confirm the date and time of this important presentation of interest to all concerned about crime in Annapolis. The Powerpoint slides to accompany the ICMA presentation can be viewed and downloaded at: http://www.annapolis.gov/upload/images/news/PoliceReport.pdf
The ICMA’s recommendations in brief form plus many charts, maps and observations of problem areas are in these slides, but it is expected that Mr. Matarese’s presentation on July 19 will provide context and a better understanding of the findings summarized in the slides. At the June 16th City Council Workshop on the ICMA report, the APD Chief, Michael Pristoop, provided preliminary comments on each of the ICMA recommendations. The Chief generally agreed with most of the ICMA recommendations. His written comments are not yet available online. Hopefully the Chief’s response will be presented in full at the July 19th public presentation. The next step seems to be for the ICMA and the Chief to develop a plan to implement of the specific changes needed. After the ICMA presentation, a meeting of the ECA Safety Task Force will be convened to discuss the recommendations, the City’s response and plans for implementation, and what role the ECA Safety Task force should play going forward. Stay tuned for notice of this meeting when it is scheduled.
ECA Board Member Appointed to Safe Streets Coalition
Charles Worrell, as recommended by the ECA Board, was appointed as the Mayor’s Representative to the Capital City Safe Streets Coalition that has begun meeting regularly. Charles is one of three citizen representatives; the other two are: Jim Turner, City Council Representative, and Don Lamb-Minor, District 30 Representative. The ECA greatly appreciates Charles’ service in this important role. The following is from Charles’ report from the June 25 monthly Coalition meeting:
- House Bill 1550 is a piece of state legislation that authorizes the Department of General Services police to exercise police powers in parts of the City adjacent to the State Capital grounds. It has been signed into law, but the memorandum of understanding is still in routing for signatures. In the interim, the DGS police and APD have already begun coordinating enforcement actions.
- HACA and APD are in the final stages of completing their memorandum of understanding that will allow APD officers to act as agents of HACA while patrolling HACA properties. The most visible result of this will be that APD will no longer need a HACA official to apprehend a person who has been banned from HACA property for trespassing.
- APD has been conducting joint enforcement activities with Anne Arundel County Police, as well as State Police; there will be more of these joint activities forthcoming. APD has also been working with the County Sherriff’s department to increase the timeframes each week in which outstanding warrants are being served.
- APD is bringing new systems online that will allow more timely mapping of crime reports in order to adjust patrol assignments in response; as well as to provide electronic notification to other agencies when people of interest are arrested (Parole & Probation, Juvenile Services, State's Attorney).
Eastport Community Unity Coalition
Beginning in April 2008, several local churches plus members of the ECA and the Annapolitans United Against Crime began forming a partnership with the Eastport Terrace and Harbour House communities to explore ways to support a united sense of community. In May this group began hosting a Family Night every Wednesday evening at the Eastport Community Center on President Street. The ECA Board has agreed to share the responsibility for organizing a Family Night dinner once a month with Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, Eastport United Methodist Church, and St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, with each of the organizations rotating as the lead organizer.
Volunteers who want to help with these Family Nights or who want to participate in other programs that are under development please contact either Lee Finney, lee.finney@att.net, or Jane Lawrence, jwlawrence2@verizon.net.
New Street Lights
A recent check revealed that only some of the original list of new street lights agreed upon by representatives of the City and the ECA have been installed. The City had reported that BGE committed to complete these installations in May 2008 but as of June 30, there were eight identified poles without a light. The ECA has requested an explanation and remediation from the City.
Please send comments or questions to lee.finney@att.net. Have a safe summer!
Lee Finney
ECA Vice-President & Safety Chair
410-268-2680
Crime Prevention Tips
Suspicious
Activity and Crime Reporting Number 410 268-4141 |
Tip #1 - Use caution when conducting transactions at ATMs. Nationwide, there have been cases reported where PIN numbers have been obtained by criminals standing behind the ATM user with a cell phone camera. Usually you can shield your PIN number by placing your body between someone behind you and the keypad - or better yet, if someone is standing in very close proximity to you, ask the person to exercise proper etiquette by standing further back- or leave and conduct your transaction at another time or place.
Tip #2 - Leave the ringer volume on your telephone at a low level when you are not home- especially if away on vacation. Hearing an unanswered phone can be a tip off that your home is empty. Similarly, if you use an answering machine, leave the volume on that down also so that someone on the outside cannot hear it.
Tip #3 - Help your senior citizen friends and relatives avoid being the victims of fraud. Remind them to always check with a trusted friend or relative before committing to any substantial financial transactions. They should be advised to follow this practice even if it is a family member involved in the proposal.
Tip #4 - If you are going on vacation, take crime prevention with you. For starters, prepare for your trip if you are going to unfamiliar areas by obtaining maps and formulating a travel plan with directions beforehand. This could help prevent you from getting lost in possibly dangerous, unfamiliar territory. Stopping for directions in such conditions could be hazardous. If you must ask directions, do so at a busy public area such as a gas station or travel plaza, rather than from pedestrians.
Tip #5 - Inventory and mark your valuables throughout your home and store the records in a safe place. This can help with insurance claims and recovery of property in case your home is ever burglarized. Use your driver's license number as an identifier rather than your social security number- law enforcement cannot readily trace property through social security numbers.
Tips are extracted from various Annapolis Police Department Neighborhood Watch Community Policing Reports, which are available daily at Annapolis Daily Police Report.
