Our Say:Aldermen finally pay attention to crime issue
Normally, we wouldn't praise aldermen because at least some of them say they are making public safety a priority.
What else could city officials possibly put at the top of their lists? Issues the City Council has no authority over? Meaningless apologies for misdeeds far back in history?
Well, in Annapolis' case, all of the above.
But the flood of comments, phone calls and e-mails from constituents upset by brutal crimes seems to have had a sobering effect.
We can only endorse the remarks by Alderman David Cordle, who focused on this issue throughout: "It should always, always be public safety first. The city has to reset its priorities. I'm getting dozens of e-mails from (Alderman) Sam Shropshire about plastic bags every week. I don't have time for that right now. People are getting shot, stabbed, beaten and robbed."
Mr. Shropshire, however, has taken some time out from sending those e-mails to do ride-alongs with city police and visit public housing communities. "I'm very convinced we need to fill the vacant positions in city cops," he said. "We need to give them a little more power in recruiting and get affordable housing for police."
In addition to sensible statements by aldermen, there is some encouraging news. Increased police presence in Eastport has led to arrests, the Eastport Civic Association has formed a crime task force and is planning a neighborhood walk-through, and the police report an upswing in Neighborhood Watch applications.
Perhaps more important: For the first time in nearly a year, the city police have scheduled an exam for potential police recruits.
The city is not going to keep crime under control without a neighborhood-by-neighborhood police presence - what Mr. Cordle calls "feet on the street." It's hard to see how that can be done when the department has 22 vacancies.
If the city is going to put public safety first, filling those vacancies is crucial.
