Ocean City crime had lower-key summer start, as police keep high-visibility
Ocean City police had a less busy start to the summer, Police Chief Ross Buzzuro told the Town Council, noting a dip in patrol officers.
During the July 18 council meeting, Buzzuro reported there were 5,182 officer calls for service in June 2022 as compared to the 6,144 during the same month last year. Citizens calls for service in 2022 were 2,739, lower than the 2021 total of 3,141.
Most of the top 25 calls for service showed a decrease in 2022, according to the presentation. Among them were:
Town ordinance violations totaling 1,441, down from 1,685 in 2021.
Traffic stops 1,133, with a slight increase from the 1,002 in 2021.
"We had a very high visibility between our full-time officers, public safety aides and our seasonal police officers," said Ashley Miller, deputy communications manager for the department. "When we saw a spike in 2020 and 2021, we reallocated all our officers to those hot spots where we saw those crimes. This year, we knew we're going to hit the ground running in June with high visibility of our officers throughout (the town)."
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Other calls such as citizen assistance, disorderly, noise and collisions had significant decreases.
He also noted that a reduction of 70 to 80 fewer vehicle collisions that allowed officers to deal with other incidents as well as bolster public safety. June enforcement data included:
510 custodial arrests.
21 criminal citations.
48 drug arrests.
142 drug citations (marijuana).
41 DUI arrests.
79 weapon arrests.
Not specifically addressed, were a stabbing incident and the unrelated pedestrian fatality of a firefighter during the state firemen's convention. Three stabbing victims were taken to hospitals June 20; a juvenile was charged with affray and a 23-year-old man was charged with attempted murder related to the incident, according to police press releases.
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Buzzuro said the implementation of body-worn cameras by the department seems to be working "seamlessly" and the town is utilizing the City Watch camera system with even more in-depth recordings.
The City Watch cameras were used to aid in the identification of three suspects in the armed robbery of a person June 15 at 16th Street and Philadelphia Avenue, according to a police news release.
Capt. Elton Harmon of the Patrol Division confirmed the department continues to monitor traffic enforcement near 142nd Street and is slowing down traffic.
The H20 under 21 nightclub has been the source of some issues, but police said they have been working with the owner and increasing a police presence at certain times of the evening.
"Certain nights we were seeing things on the side streets, so we would reallocate officers there. We made sure we had a presence there because we saw much more visitation there and wanted to make sure everyone going in and out was safe," Miller said.
According to Miller, a closer look at the data was key to having the flexibility that was required to get numbers trending downward.
Attention-grabbing incidents from past summers
In 2021, three videos of two incidents, which occurred on separate June weekends on the Boardwalk, brought national attention.
One of the videos connected to the June 12, 2021, incident shows an officer using his knee to repeatedly strike a 19-year-old who is being restrained on the ground as an officer demands that he give them his hands.
At least four 19-year-olds were arrested in that incident and additional footage captured by bystanders shows a Taser being used on one of them.
The June 6, 2021, video of the other incident depicts officers using a Taser on an 18-year-old.
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In 2021, Part I crime dropped 10% when compared to the five-year average, with increases in forcible rape and simple assault, according to the department's annual report.
However, in 2020, Ocean City Police Department reported a 21% increase in Part 1 crime, which includes rape, robbery, assault and other types of crime. Crime in the resort, especially violent crime, spiked in that year for the first time in five years, according to statistics released from the department.
Assaults on police officers also had its largest increase in 2020, according to that year's annual report.
"June is our busiest month with our officer going call to call, whether it's them being called or them being proactive to where we feel it's a nonstop month," Miller said of the 2022 season.
Despite the smaller crowds during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ocean City experienced several notable violent incidents in June 2020 on the Boardwalk including multiple assaults and stabbings along with a large brawl that left the public and business owners uneasy about safety.
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The fight was one of several incidents that year on the Boardwalk and throughout town that earned the ire of residents, town officials and even the governor, who committed to ramping up state police support in the town.
The Boardwalk brawl in particular sparked outrage from the public and a response from Ocean City. The incident also led to the Ocean City Police Department to ask the public to help them identify multiple individuals in a string of recent violent crimes that happened along the Boardwalk.
Encouraging data in light of the past two years is spurring more of the same tactics by the department. Even the use of social media to inform the public and by the public itself has helped reduce crime. Officers even getting to know many of the business owners is a simple, but effective tool for them.
June has traditionally been a very busy month for the department given the influx of tourists in the summer months. While many pointed to Senior Week visitors for the uptick, a Delmarva Now analysis at the time showed people age 20 and older accounted for a majority of the arrests.
The department reports more than 61% of last year's crime in 2020 occurred during the summer months, with approximately 27% taking place in June alone.
"Each year we've been seeing a decline in interest within our seasonal (officer) program. We try to recruit at colleges, but that didn't work for a time due to COVID. Now we're working with apps and trying to reach candidates, but we still have rigorous requirements full background checks, a polygraph and psychological examination to be a provisional officer," Miller said of 2022 recruitment.
This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Ocean City's June crime numbers dip in 2022
