Baltimore Police Facing Backlash For Special Patrols Around Hopkins
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The Baltimore City Police Department is facing criticism for deploying some of its officers to help with security near Johns Hopkins facilities.
From its hospital to the university, top to bottom, Johns Hopkins is world renowned. But in a city constantly battling a surge in violent crime, even the Hopkins area isn't immune to the violence.
For months, Baltimore City police have deployed officers near Hopkins to help with the crime.
But City Council President Jack Young issued a letter to Police Interim Commissioner Gary Tuggle calling for it to end.
Young wrote in the letter the "City can't afford to have officers pulled from a severely understaffed district, to police solely the area located near a private institution."
Councilman Brandon Scott said the decision should rely on where there's a spike in crime, leaving it up to the district commanders.
"We need to rely on the data so it can tell us where the officers should be deployed. If the data says there's a crime spike near Hopkins, and I know at time it suggests there is, then that's where the officers should be. if the data suggests there's a spike in crime elsewhere, then that's where they should be. They shouldn't be strapped" Scott said.
Mayor Catherine Pugh said the officers are patrolling the area, not the Hopkins properties. Pugh pointed to all Hopkins has done to help revitalize east Baltimore, how it's the number one employer in Baltimore and the millions of dollars in donations its made.
Pugh said Hopkins set the tone for other institutions, by giving employees $35,000 to live where they work.
"Johns Hopkins is not on an island by itself. It's not in its own area. It's in east Baltimore where we have a violence reduction initiative and where there's been some of our most violent crime," Pugh said. "These officers are not on the campus. They're in the surrounding communities and neighborhoods."
The practice began under former police commissioner Kevin Davis, who tweeted out that Hopkins experiences "unprecedented crime."
Davis added, "those who blocked Hopkins from starting its own police department, pull this political stunt."
A deployment that's now in the spotlight, with many left wondering, what's the next move.
Tuggle is now evaluating the deployment and is expected to make a decision within the week.
Hopkins released a statement saying they've upped security on their own by 40 percent over the past few years, adding that the officers are deployed in surrounding neighborhoods and on city streets, not on their property.
Earlier this year, legislation was introduced that would have allowed Hopkins to become the first private university in Maryland with its own police department but it was eventually killed by state lawmakers.
Hopkins University released the following statement:
"Crime on Baltimore's streets poses a serious and growing challenge for all of us. Johns Hopkins has, over the past decade, dramatically increased its investment in the city—building new facilities, introducing new programs, and hiring large numbers of Baltimore citizens (including 120 ex-offenders last year alone). As we continue to invest in the city we call home, we have to ensure the safety of our more than 36,000 employees, 68,000 annual hospital patients and many thousands of students in Baltimore. This daily concern extends to our neighbors and fellow citizens across the city, and is reflected in our significant support for Baltimore-based businesses, services, and public education.
In this spirit, knowing the risks that high levels of violence pose to the continuation of our mission in Baltimore, we have been working intensively with the mayor and Baltimore Police to address surging crime in the neighborhoods around our campuses. On our end, we have increased our direct expenditure on security related activities by nearly 40 percent since 2014 with spending on the Homewood campus alone doubling over that same period. We also have encouraged and are appreciative of BPD interventions to address crime in Charles Village and East Baltimore. Baltimore Police deployment in these neighborhoods are all on city streets and neighborhoods, not on Johns Hopkins property; the officers are under Baltimore Police command, and patrol areas are determined based on criminal activity and trends.
These are difficult days for Baltimore. Criminal violence affects us all. It has caused others to leave the city or decide not to move here. But Johns Hopkins, the City's largest private employer, is here for the duration. We are growing, investing and hiring in the firm belief that Baltimore is a great place to work, play and live."
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