Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich, Councilmember Kate Stewart, Police Chief Marcus Jones, and other community leaders held a press conference Monday afternoon in Silver Spring to announce the introduction of legislation to improve safety for businesses and residents throughout the County. According to the County, the “Late Night Business Safety Plan”
bill would “establish new rules for nighttime businesses in areas with higher calls for service during certain late night hours to develop Safety Plans in conjunction with the Montgomery County Police Department.” Notes from the press conference below, courtesy of @MontgomeryCoMD on Twitter.
- Our police and administration have taken an extensive look at late night activity across the county to ensure the safety of every business.
- The plan requires businesses to have their own internal safety procedures, which will be informed to the police so that they can respond quickly in case of any incidents.
- The plan requires businesses to have their own internal safety procedures, which will be informed to the police so that they can respond quickly in case of any incidents.
- In some parts of the country, gunmen have targeted late-night establishments, which is why we need to be proactive in keeping our residents safe.
- Police have responded to incidents of gunfire and fights that are often tied to late-night bars and clubs, so it’s essential to take necessary steps to prevent such incidents.
- The Violent Crime Information Center is monitoring cameras in areas that draw late-night crowds, and we have added two mobile security platforms with plans to add three more.
- We have designed new day shifts around high-visibility foot patrol units to engage with the community and keep a closer eye on public spaces like parking garages.
- As the weather gets warmer, more officers will be on bicycles while their patrol cars will be parked in high visibility locations.
- Traffic officers are also working to make late-night activity safer by focusing on speeding, reckless driving, and distracted driving in areas with many walkers.
- We have added staff and reintroduced the buddy escort system to address specific concerns from residents and visitors.
- Our goal is to create safe streets and treat our communities and residents with respect and dignity, and not have Silver Spring develop a reputation of being too dangerous at night.
- Our work to make the county safer won’t end. We will continue seeking input on ways to make Montgomery County safer for everyone.
- To improve safety in the county, we have taken several initiatives such as improving lighting in parking lots, walkways, etc.
- We have fixed and mobile license plate readers across the county to identify stolen vehicles, often used to commit other crimes.
- By studying crime statistics, we have changed patrol shifts and strategies to match when officers may be needed most and emphasized detecting criminal activity before it occurs.
- Our recent drug arrests and confiscation of many guns are examples of our increased efforts to make the county safer.
- We have increased our efforts to work with neighborhood leaders and have a program called “Adopt A Neighborhood” to engage police with the community.
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1 comment
Let’s see. Looks like fluff, no stuff. Cops on bikes is good.