Annapolis police should increase patrols with a special team of officers focused on public housing communities that are hot spots for crime in a city with three times the national homicide rate, according to a study presented to the City Council this week.
Most of the six homicides since January have occurred in low-income housing communities and sparked concerns that the city is on track to exceed the record-breaking eight homicides last year.
The city called on the International City/County Management Association to complete a $60,000 independent study of the police department and offer recommendations Monday night.
The “hot spot” unit of four officers and a supervisor would patrol during high-crime hours in the city?s 10 public housing complexes.
“People living in these communities are being terrorized by people who don?t belong there,” said Leonard Matarese, director of ICMA public safety services.
The unit would be funded with money allocated to the “overtime” program to prevent any additional cost to the city.
Interim Police Chief Michael Pristoop, 42, said he?s developing a memorandum of understanding with the Housing Authority of the City of Annapolis that would give city police law enforcement authority on its properties. After years of confusion over who shouldpolice the federally owned properties, the memorandum would establish the city?s responsibility.
The Housing Authority would provide $200,000 each fiscal year for policing and give city police authority to ban trespassers in the communities.
“There are just a handful of people committing the majority of crime in the housing communities,” Pristoop said.
“We?re trying to extract the wrong people from these communities.”
Pristoop said the memorandum would also allow police to step up traffic enforcement in the communities.
“If you have aggressive traffic enforcement, you have a better chance of finding guys who are on their way to or from a crime,” Matarese said.
An enforcement unit called FLEX already has been created to target individuals notorious for committing violent crimes, Pristoop said.
Eric Brown, executive director of the Housing Authority, said he was pleased with the recommendations to improve public housing.
Other recommendations included establishing an authorized police force of at least 117 officers and aggressively filling vacancies.
The Criminal Investigations Division will be moved back on-site to police headquarters, and an updated computer 911 dispatch system will be purchased.
