Baltimore County Councilman David Marks will sponsor a town hall meeting on Thursday, Jan. 3 to discuss crime in northeastern Baltimore County.
The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of St. Michael Lutheran Church in Perry Hall (9534 Belair Rd, Baltimore, MD 21236).
The police captains for the White Marsh and Parkville precincts will be present to answer questions.
In the event of inclement weather that closes Baltimore County Public Schools, the meeting will be postponed with an announcement shared on Councilman Marks’ Facebook page,
Mark’s town hall was announced a few days after he released a Dec. 15 statement about crime after a robbery.
“Baltimore County has a serious, growing pattern of crime and it is time for elected officials to acknowledge and respond to it. Here are my thoughts.
* We surround Baltimore City on three sides. Crime is a metropolitan problem, and the city’s failure to improve public safety is affecting surrounding jurisdictions.
* We have gone, over the past two years, from crime reports largely about shed burglaries to news about armed robberies and, sadly, a police officer being killed in a quiet residential neighborhood.
* Crime is mobile – and no, not necessarily brought by bus lines. Drivers come and go and that is very tough to stop.
* When the same gasoline station is robbed three times in 18 months, that’s more than a random occurrence. I will be reaching out to the gas station owner and shopping center management over the next few days.
* The best solution I know is to increase our police presence, fill vacant positions, support any serious regional crime control efforts, and pass legislation that improves our broken criminal justice system.
I live here, too. I am angry at these incidents and will do all in my power to support our law enforcement professionals.”