The Greenbelt Police Department held a public safety town hall meeting on Thursday, November 13 at Springhill Lake Recreation Center to discuss crime trends, juvenile justice issues and ongoing efforts to strengthen community engagement in response to the recent Franklin Park shootings in October (see the October 9 issue).
Franklin Park representatives were present at the meeting, including General Manager Denise Knight. “The meeting reaffirmed the importance of open communication, coordinated efforts and shared accountability in addressing safety concerns across the community,” said Knight.
“For over a decade, Franklin Park has sustained a strong partnership with the Greenbelt Police Department, including a designated community police officer who is actively engaged on our property,” Knight said. “Community policing, regular communication and joint participation in resident events have strengthened trust between officers and residents. This partnership has contributed significantly to reduced crime over the years, and we value the leadership and support of the police chief and his team.”
Police Chief Richard Bowers opened the meeting by summarizing recent crime patterns in the city. According to the department, crime rates were much lower before 2020 and there was a substantial spike in crime from 2022 to 2023. However, the past two years have shown a decrease in overall crime in Greenbelt and a return to pre-Covid levels.
“Last year crime was down about 20 percent overall and this year we’re down close to 15 percent overall, so those are really good decreases that we continue to see not only here in Greenbelt but county and statewide,” said Bowers.
He explained the earlier increase in crime, especially during the pandemic, was mostly due to juvenile crime committed by middle- and high school-aged students. Juvenile crime is a major point of interest for the Greenbelt Police, especially since many recent contact and non-contact shootings involved juveniles, according to Bowers.
Bowers said young offenders are often released without adequate services, supervision or accountability, which he said is the most common cause of repeat incidents.
“The Juvenile Justice System, the Department of Juvenile Services, they make decisions as to what they feel are in the best interest of the child, but aren’t always in the best interest of everyone else,” Bowers said.
He gave an example of a juvenile arrested for attempting to steal a car, in which the only consequence for the adolescent was to write a 250-word essay. Later, the juvenile was arrested for being involved in a non-contact shooting.
“You can see the lack of consequences translate across the board,” Bowers said. “Those offenders are essentially being released back into society without rehabilitation, proper supervision and proper consequences for their actions.”
Bowers also addressed the 2021 Juvenile Interrogation Act, which limits how police can question minors. The legislation requires law enforcement to notify a juvenile’s parent or guardian and allow the child to consult with an attorney to permit police interrogation. Bowers explained that attorneys rarely grant police questioning, which makes it difficult to hold juveniles accountable.
At the same time, the law is intended to protect young people from being intimidated or coerced into admitting to crimes they may not have committed. “We’ve seen children, some as young as 10 or 12, get arrested or assumed to have done something they didn’t do,” said District 22 Maryland State Senator Alonzo Washington. The protections also ensure that minors have someone to guide them and safeguard their rights, which is especially important for youth of color, who are disproportionately impacted in the system. “We want to protect these young people; we need it. It’s about finding a balance between accountability and protection for our youth,” said Washington.
While much of the discussion focused on challenges police face in handling juvenile crime, local coach and youth advocate and recent city council candidate Kevin Lockhart shifted the conversation to solutions for teens outside the justice system. Lockhart, a Greenbelt resident for 18 years, has spent over 15 years coaching youth, including 10 years with the Greenbelt Boys and Girls Club. “I talked to my teams, and if they don’t make their high school teams, the Boys and Girls Club ages out at age 14, they’ve got nothing to do,” Lockhart said. “We need to get some kind of program for kids of those ages: mentoring, sports, interacting with the police. I think that would help.”
City officials acknowledged Lockhart’s concerns and described existing programs designed to engage youth in safe, positive activities. Greenbelt Councilmember Danielle McKinney highlighted the Greenbelt Police Department Summer Youth Program, a multi-session camp run entirely by police officers that offers activities and mentorship for Greenbelt youth. “I’ve seen some of the teenagers, 13-year-olds, holding onto the officers at the end of camp, saying ‘We’re going to miss you.’ It was incredibly touching,” McKinney said. “We’re planning to expand and share more of these experiences because it makes such a difference for the kids and for the relationship between youth and police.” However, as Lockhart pointed out, the camp only runs up to age 14.
Despite the success of existing programs, officials and community members agreed more opportunities are needed for older teens, particularly those between 14 and 18, who often fall through the cracks.
As the meeting wrapped up, residents asked how they could help improve safety and support youth in the Greenbelt community and officials discussed ways to better spread the word about future town halls and meetings such as this, so more community members attend and contribute. “We can’t do this alone. Trust and communication, that’s how we make Greenbelt safer,” said Bowers.
Ellie Jornlin is a University of Maryland student at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism and former Greenbelt News Review intern.
