By Adam Pagnucco.
Part Two examined trends in arrests, traffic citations and warrants served contained in Montgomery County’s comprehensive annual financial reports (CAFRs). Now let’s look at stats supplied by the county’s two largest municipalities – Gaithersburg and Rockville – both of whom have police departments.
Let’s start with full-time equivalent (FTEs) positions. The chart below shows Gaithersburg’s police FTEs from 2001 through 2022.
Gaithersburg has been expanding its police department with a temporary pause during the Great Recession.
The chart below shows Rockville’s public safety FTEs from 2009 through 2022. The city’s budget does not indicate the presence of significant public safety functions other than police.
Rockville’s public safety staffing has been stable. So for both cities, any change in police stats has not been caused by declining positions. Vacancies, however, may be an issue.
The chart below shows Gaithersburg’s traffic citations from 2001 through 2022.
Citations peaked in 2013 and have been falling since, with a dramatic decline during the pandemic.
The chart below shows traffic violations in Rockville from 2009 through 2022. This data does not include speed camera or red light camera citations.
After a spike in 2012, Rockville’s violations have been more steady, falling less precipitously during COVID. This variation between the two cities is interesting given that they are right next to each other.
Finally, the chart below shows physical arrests in Rockville from 2009 through 2022.
Arrests in Rockville have fallen steadily since 2012. This is very different from the county government’s pattern, in which arrests spiked in 2015-19 and dropped in the pandemic. Is this due to other parts of the county’s geography outside of Rockville or are there differing police practices? Gaithersburg’s comprehensive annual financial reports do not contain arrest data.
The county, Gaithersburg and Rockville have all shown different trends in the police data they release. Whether any of it shows depolicing is a matter of debate.
The most interesting jurisdiction is Takoma Park, which releases more police stats than any of the three governments we have so far covered. We shall examine Takoma Park next.