Baltimore County Invests Nearly $3.3M On New PD Uniforms, Cruisers
BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD. (WJZ) — Baltimore County is upgrading their police department- starting with new uniforms and cruisers.
The county is investing nearly $3.3 million in their police department through these two new measures.
They unveiled new cargo trousers, body armor vests with easier access to equipment and baseball caps on Friday- a major upgrade for more than 1,900 Baltimore County police officers.
"Means that they're listening to us so that was nice because we went to in service and told the chief we wanted new uniforms to feel comfortable," said Officer Malak Soussi, with Baltimore County Police.
The new uniforms are meant to help officers perform their duties better, compared to their older uniforms.
"Every day we are in our patrol car and we have to wear these uniforms, we get in foot chases, different kinds of activities, climb in houses for different alarms and we have to be comfortable," Soussi said.
The police fleet is also set to get a makeover.
"The SUV is a lot more room, shoulder-room, head-room and leg-room, this car will give us a lot more utility in how we do our job every day," said Baltimore County Police Chief Terrence Sheridan.
A total of 252 new police vehicles will replace their current inventory.
The police interceptor utility provides a boost in safety features, police say, in addition to the extra space for officers and equipment.
"I'm committed to working with Chief Sheridan and his team to ensure we continue reducing crime in Baltimore County and making this place unwelcome for anyone who chooses to break the law or threaten quality of life," said Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski.
The rollout of new vehicles and uniforms will be complete by 2020.
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