Hagerstown officials talk about steps to address violent crime, drug epidemic

In the wake of a fatal shooting near Hagerstown's downtown on July 18, several Hagerstown elected officials agreed that public meetings should be held with various community leaders to discuss how to address factors contributing to crime and drug issues in the city.

The shooting occurred shortly before 1 p.m. on a Thursday in the 200 block of East Washington Street. Two men shot at a car parked along the street, resulting in the death of Rusty Mark Edwards, 49, and injuring another person in the car, according to court documents. Edwards had gotten out of the car after the shots started and fired back, Hagerstown Police wrote in court documents.

As of Friday, one of the two men accused of shooting at the car has been charged in Edwards' homicide and was being held without bond at the Washington County Detention Center.

Hagerstown Police Capt. Thomas Langston said in an email Thursday that an arrest warrant had been issued for a second shooter whom police were trying to find.

At the Hagerstown City Council meeting July 23, several people addressed city officials with concerns about crime and drug use in the city, according to a video of the meeting on the city's Facebook page.

One resident told city officials he could have been shot because he had walked through the area before the shooting. He also mentioned trash, "all-night prostitutes" and "druggies" in the neighborhood.

Mayor Tekesha Martinez later asked Langston if he had a directive for city officials.

"I think the one thing that you all could do for us and the city would be to focus on hiring more cops. Immediately. That’s the easiest ask that I can ask right now," Langston said.

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Status of Hagerstown Police staffing

While authorized for a sworn force of 91 officers, Hagerstown Police had 76 sworn officers as of Thursday, according to an email from Langston, who is second-in-command at the police department.

That includes 51 officers, four officer trainees in field training, 15 sergeants, four lieutenants, one captain and one chief.

The department has two recruits in the police academy. Recruits are hired for the academy and will be at least 21 years old upon graduation when they will be sworn in, Langston explained.

Hagerstown Councilman Kristin Aleshire said in a phone interview Thursday that the city has funds available to hire more officers, but it takes time to get candidates through appropriate vetting and training to the point they can go on patrol.

People also have to want to be police officers, and people aren't migrating to that profession the way they did decades ago, Councilman Peter Perini said.

Hagerstown Police Chief Paul Kifer, who was on vacation this past week, discussed issues regarding recruiting and retaining police with The Herald-Mail last September.

Among the challenges is the number of agencies seeking officers — Hagerstown Police isn't the only law enforcement agency in the region or country competing for police officers, city officials said.

Perini gave Hagerstown Police credit for finding new ways to help with policing, including using technology such as cameras and drones.

Langston said the department also has three cadets. Cadets range in age from 18 to 21. They are not sworn officers, but perform administrative duties and do some on-the-job training to prepare for when they can enter the police academy near turning 21, Langston wrote.

"The Cadet program is a feeder program for persons on the way to becoming police officers," Langston wrote. It focuses on hiring local youths from Washington County Public Schools, such as the technical high school.

The Boyd J. Michael III Technical High School's programs include criminal justice, homeland security information and communications technology and a Fire & Rescue Academy.

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Ideas include collaborative meetings, action plan, greater transparency

Councilwoman Tiara Burnett said Thursday that she emailed City Administrator Scott Nicewarner after the July 18 shooting to suggest a meeting regarding what can be done about gun violence and overall crime. She echoed that at the council meeting, asking for a meeting with Hagerstown Police, the Washington County Sheriff's Office and Maryland State Police.

Burnett said Thursday there needs to be a long public meeting, separate from a regular work session and bringing in partners to discuss issues related to crime as a whole.

Councilman Matthew Schindler said he also emailed Nicewarner and his colleagues, suggesting a violent crimes task force. Schindler, like Burnett, also sought ideas from the public through his Facebook page.

One suggestion Burnett heard was greater transparency from Hagerstown Police after shootings.

Hagerstown Police posted on Facebook about 1 1/2 hours after the shooting that they were investigating the incident, urged anyone with information to come forward and advised residents to avoid the area because several streets were closed for the investigation.

About a half-hour later, Hagerstown Police issued a news release stating the preliminary investigation showed the shooting was a targeted incident.

Burnett said a public statement that an investigation was underway could have been shared faster for the community.

City officials might need to make it easier for people to find out how to share information with police about criminal or suspicious activities, Burnett said.

She also suggested greater transparency regarding how many officers Hagerstown Police has, how many of them are on patrol and the status of recruiting officers.

"I think those are easy wins, achievable if we have the OK across the team to do that," Burnett said.

Perini said he would encourage Burnett's call for a summit with law enforcement. "A lot of times ... investigative work is not done in the public eye for obvious reasons and cannot be discussed," he said.

Councilman Kristin Aleshire told The Herald-Mail there needs to be a series of meetings to address various issues, including substance abuse and mental health, contributing to crime, and reports of residents finding discarded needles and watching people injecting themselves with drugs near the residents' homes.

"I want multiple meetings. Take each issue one at a time with the appropriate parties" and vet that issue in public so residents have clarity on what it is the city can and cannot do and who is or isn't responsible to take action on each specific item, Aleshire said.

Maryland State Sen. Paul Corderman sent a letter to the city's political leaders last week that included, among a list of possible issues to discuss, Martinsburg, W.Va.'s "drug house" ordinance . That ordinance holds property owners accountable with fines, The Herald-Mail has reported.

Councilwoman Shelley McIntire said in a phone interview Friday that "a true action plan" is needed with collaboration from other government and community groups.

A strategic plan is needed for these social issues the community is experiencing, McIntire said; one where "everyone understands their roles and responsibilities and has action items," and egos and personal agendas are checked at the door, she said.

McIntire also suggested two possible funding sources the city might be able to use to help address issues.

One possibility is using Invest Hagerstown money for one year to help execute a strategic plan. Invest Hagerstown is money from the city's general fund used to provide grants to help residents and business rehabilitate, reuse and repurpose properties, she said.

McIntire also said the city hadn't yet used the opioid response money it had been awarded through the state. Perhaps that money could be used to hire an outside consultant to help guide a strategic plan, she wrote in a follow-up text.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Hagerstown officials talk about steps to address violent crime, drug epidemic