How to be lazy... by the PG County Police Department

Mistakes are a part of life. We all make them. The most important aspect of a mistake, however, is not the mistake itself, but what you do in response when one is made.

The Prince George's County police department is not immune to mistakes. Periodically, when making a news release, the wrong city or town is cited within as where a crime took place. Obviously, the reporting of inaccurate information is not a good thing.

So what would be the logical thing to do to solve this dilemma?

Oh, I don't know. The county police department is exactly that - a COUNTY police department. Surely they, being overseers of all things within the borders of PG County would at least know where city and town lines are drawn. And if not, an officer or two (grab 'em from a speed trap if you need to find some) could actually go into the communities and find out exactly where a city or town's limits are and report back to police HQ.

Once all this information is gathered, a map could be made and the next time a crime is committed, whoever is writing the press release can refer to this map (color coded if necessary) and pinpoint the exact location of the crime. Then, this information can be utilized and actually used in the new releases.

Is that too much to ask of the police department? I really don't think so.

And let me say here that I really do appreciate what policemen do for us on a regular basis. If we had no police officers, we sure couldn't enjoy the quality of life that we currently have. (Although speed traps could surely be done away with.)

So what has the good ole PG County police department decided to solve their problem? Just eliminate all usage of city and town names in their reports? You got it! That is exactly what they are going to do!

I've said this before, and I will say it again. The police are excellent 99% of the time. It just seems that in the remaining 1%, they really know how to drop the ball. And if this is not an example of that, I don't know what is.


Backlash Spurs Pr. George's Police to Stop Releasing Crime Jurisdictions

As Prince George's grapples with a soaring crime rate, the hodgepodge of 27 jurisdictions that dot the county are increasingly sensitive about the stigma of homicides or carjackings that occur just outside their borders. They have repeatedly registered complaints with the media and the county police department when crime is inaccurately attributed to their city or town.

To address the growing discontent and avoid the possibility of getting it wrong, the county police have decided that their news releases will no longer identify the cities and towns where crimes occur. From now on, the department will release only street names and block numbers.