A Periodic Message from the Precinct Commander

Captain J. M. Lurz, Commander of Precinct 7 - Cockeysville

Every few months, Captain Lurz will provide a message regarding issues of interest to the residents and the general public at large within the Cockeysville Precinct. The two previous messages will be maintained on this page for reference. There will also be a "Highlights From Past Messages" section that will contain useful information for our precinct's residents.

January 14, 2010

My personal and best wishes to everyone for a safe, happy and healthy new year!

For the latest webpage column, I wanted to ‘repeat” an article- with some minor updates - from last year’s Greater Timonium Community Council January newsletter to provide an overview on two important support units working out of Precinct 7 - The Traffic Enforcement Team and the Community Outreach Team. These two teams are not necessarily “911-driven”, but are an integral part of our partnership with you. That’s why it’s important that you know they are a resource for you to use.

The six-member Traffic Team handles the vast majority of all community-based traffic complaints in regards to speeding, reckless driving, etc. Once a complaint is received, it is assigned to a Traffic Team member who then “owns” the project and is responsible for determining the extent of the problem and finding a solution. Even though we may often have numerous “open” traffic complaints logged at any one time, we know that quick “band-aid” solutions do not bring a long term solution to the problem. The Traffic Team officers are challenged to think outside the box and to use resources other than radar guns to solve problems. This often means working closely with other county agencies to address road and signage issues. Traffic Team members also work closely with community members who live in the area of the primary complaint and solicit their assistance in court testimony, etc. Finally, the stepped-up enforcement by the Traffic Team means more visible flashing lights which sends the message, “the police are in the area.” And, those flashing lights and enforcement programs, coupled with community awareness and alertness, appear to have helped with crime control in three major areas in 2009 (burglary – at or near the 2008 levels; robbery and auto theft – substantially below the 2008 levels). The final figures for 2009 are not out yet, but I will update you once I have them.

Secondly, the Precinct 7 Community Outreach Team provides assistance to the patrol units in providing proactive crime-prevention and neighborhood intervention and mediation assistance. For those of you who have attended the “Citizens’ Academy”, you probably heard me refer to the Outreach team as “The Fixer-Up” crew. Though they are sworn police officers, they specialize in “not-so-routine” solutions to “not-so-routine” problems. These officers realize that sometimes the smallest neighborhood issues can become large problems that will result in an increase in crime and quality of life issues. The Outreach team specializes in inter-agency cooperation to solve problems. The Outreach Team also includes a Domestic Violence Coordinator who provides expert assistance and counseling liaison for Domestic Violence victims.

Please feel free to contact the above teams at these numbers:

Traffic Enforcement Team – Corporal Patrick Zito   Phone 410-887-1861

Community Outreach Team – Sergeant Anthony Zelenka  Phone 410-887-1863

Domestic Violence Coordinator – Officer Deborah Sabotka   Phone 410-887-1827

I look forward to working with the community again in 2010. I truly believe that it is the police and community partnership and communication that provide the most impact in crime prevention and control. Thank you for your support of who we are and what we do.

Highlights From Past Messages

This section will contain information taken from previous messages that will be of continuing usefulness for our residents.

Winter Driving

During the winter season, we are naturally thinking of the advent of warmer weather. While enduring the snow and icy conditions, please keep in mind the common sense ideals of safe driving.  Remember to slow down and maintain extra distance between vehicles when traveling. Also, please remember to never leave a vehicle unattended while warming up. This is nothing short of an open invitation for a passerby to hop in and take off with your vehicle. And lastly with the schools closed for snow days, be cognizant of children playing and sledding near neighborhood streets.

Schools/Students

When school is in session, I would like to extend just a few reminders for area residents as kids return to their local elementary, middle, and high schools.

• The opening of area schools brings an increase in vehicular and pedestrian traffic, particularly in the morning and afternoon hours. While driving, remember to use extra caution during these times while students are going to or returning from school.
• If your children walk to school, please stress to them the importance of crossing the street at designated crosswalks that have assigned school crossing guards. Be particularly attentive near these crosswalks and follow the directions of the school crossing guard or police officer that may be there to direct traffic.
• If your children walk to school, review pedestrian safety issues with them and make sure that you know the route that they walk. No shortcuts through back yards or woods! Walking in groups is always the safest way to go. Make sure they know NOT to walk up to strangers, NOT to walk up to a stranger's car to answer "questions", not to help a stranger find a lost dog. If someone is acting suspiciously, teach him or her to "look to the tag" and, if they can, get that tag number! Have them write it on their hand or backpack if they need to do that. Make sure that they report any suspicious incidents to you or school personnel right away. Call 911 to report these incidents.
• Maryland requires that vehicles come to a full stop at least 20 feet in front of or 20 feet to the rear (depending on your direction of travel) of a school bus with its red lights flashing. This is a critical safety issue during the school year and state law sees it as such. There could be a $555 fine and three points against the violator's driver's license. And, when the bus pulls a way, why not wait another few seconds to make sure that no one is running after it because they missed it!

Please take an extra few minutes and concentrate on defensive driving and anticipating the unexpected as you drive in residential neighborhoods or in the immediate vicinity of a school.

Partnership in Reducing Crime

Partnership with our citizens and community and business associations is critical to our success. That partnership requires open communication and keeping you up to date on crime trends and proactive crime prevention information. We ask that you join us by becoming part of the team that works together to keep our neighborhoods each a safe place in which to work and live in Baltimore County. Your commitment to partnership can be quite simple - stay alert to the information that we pass along and call 911 when you observe suspicious persons or activity. We understand that some folks are hesitant to call 911 because they feel the information may be trivial. Please remember that we would rather respond to a call of suspicious activity and find that all is well than miss the opportunity to obtain a critical piece of information that may help prevent or solve a crime.

Precinct E-mail Tree

We have established an "e-mail tree" at Precinct 7 that we use to pass along crime trend information and crime prevention tips. This is an extremely powerful and popular tool in getting information out quickly to residents and the business and community associations to help them stay in touch with us. Community Association presidents then take our e-mails and distribute them throughout their membership database. We plan on archiving and posting past e-mail messages and updates on our web page in the near future. If you are interested in joining our e-mail tree, please send an e-mail to me at: jlurz@baltimorecountymd.gov We are trying to arrange the e-mail tree geographically, so please be sure to include your name and address or location of your neighborhood or business.

Revised January 20, 2010