Baltimore’s police union is upset over a new plan in the Northern District that requires officers to abandon their cars and walk foot patrols or ride bikes.
Paul Blair, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 3, said the plan hurts officer safety, because there will be only nine patrol cars during the day in North Baltimore instead of the usual 19 vehicles.
“It’s ridiculous,” he said. “If there’s only nine cars out there, who’s going to come to [officers’] rescue if they need help? A footman is only as good as the distance he can cover from block to block.”
On Monday, police in the Northern District — which includes some of the city’s wealthiest neighborhoods, such as Roland Park, Homewood and Guilford — began a three-week pilot program, requiring about half of officers assigned to daytime shifts to ride bikes or walk foot patrols, according to a Sept. 4 memo written by Deputy Major Dennis Smith.
The order called for bike patrols in four parts of the district and foot patrols in six parts, including along Greenmount Ave., N. Charles St. and The Alameda Shopping Center.
Smith wrote that foot patrol officers could be placed back in cars to respond to a major crime.
“In the event of a major incident, foot officers will be redeployed to assist with the situation to ensure there is [sic] sufficient response cars available,” he wrote.
Baltimore police spokesman Sterling Clifford said commanders in North Baltimore would never risk officer safety.
“What they’re doing is looking for a deployment pattern that will help them prevent crime, not just respond to 911 calls,” he said. “… The community loves it. It gives them a little more face time with police officers.”
On Tuesday, when there was a shooting in East Baltimore, officers were pulled off foot patrol to respond, he said.
Still, Blair said his phones have been lit up with officers who are unhappy with the three-week experimental program.
“It’s a pure officer safety issue,” he said. “This is putting them in unnecessary risk.”
