Stats from summer 2022 show improvements
After just one summer of body cameras, the Ocean City Police Department has reported a noticeable reduction in use-of-force and officer-involved complaints.
“What we’re already seeing is an increased public confidence in the department,” Police Chief Ross Buzzuro said at a council meeting Monday while presenting the department’s annual report.
The Maryland General Assembly passed legislation in 2021 requiring all law enforcement agencies to outfit officers with body cameras by 2025. The move was made to increase accountability and protect officer safety during incidents.
Ocean City officials took an ambitious approach and outfitted all resort officers with cameras last year, just in time for seasonal staff to wear them over the summer.
Buzzuro said data shows a drop not only in complaints, but also assaults on officers and incidents involving Tasers since last year.
“We know this is a direct correlation to body-worn cameras,” Buzzuro said.
The cameras created a budget shortfall of more than $425,000 last year, but Buzzuro said it was a one-time expense.
He also expects to have more detailed, accurate data to show the impact of the cameras after the coming summer.
Buzzuro added that City Watch cameras, which are set up to record in public spots throughout the resort, have resulted in the solving and prevention of more crimes over the last year.
“Coupled with the license plate reader program, that covers all of the ingress areas, locations within the town,” he explained. “That has been really valuable for us as a law enforcement agency in a quest for maintaining public safety.”
The department’s criminal investigation division also reported positive case solving numbers over the last year, with an overall clearance rate of 96 percent.
“That means 19 out of 20 [cases] are getting solved, are getting closed,” Buzzuro said. “And that is way above [the] national average.”
The number of crimes overall have gone down as well, with a 4 percent decrease over the last four years.
“It’s the second lowest we’ve had in like 30 years,” Buzzuro said. “So, we’re not only below where we were pre-covid but we’re moving in a direction to … all-time statistical lows in terms of part-one crimes. And I think that’s worth pointing out because a number of other communities are going in the opposite and the other direction.”
The report showed that staffing has also improved.
While the department had some trouble recruiting seasonal officers earlier this year, efforts to attract applicants, which included hourly raises and extra bonuses, seem to be paying off. Buzzuro said the department has almost as many recruits now as this time in 2022.
The full-time officers are almost at full strength as well.
“For an agency of this size in the state of Maryland, this is virtually unheard of,” Buzzuro said of the high employment numbers. “I don’t know of another police agency that is at full strength right now, not only in the state of Maryland but throughout the country.”
Buzzuro also reminded council members, and the public, that department officials are preparing to transition to a new crime reporting system that will, at least at first, make it look as though incidents are increasing.
The National Incident-Based Reporting System, or NIBRS, is a more comprehensive, detailed approach to scoring and recording crimes. The system has existed for decades, but now all departments across the country are required to begin using it for reporting.
Once the OCPD fully institutes the system, officials have said the numbers will undoubtedly reflect a higher number of crimes. However, the totals will not be apples to apples comparisons to those reported through the existing system.
Buzzuro said the department is taking steps to ensure members of the public are aware of the change.
The report also reflected the number of collisions, traffic stops and other police activity over the last year, and gave updates on the department’s nonprofit and community policing efforts, among other details.
The full report is available to view online.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.