Is the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office Prioritizing Deputy Safety Appropriately?

Wicomico County, MD - This past weekend, as reported here on Eastern Shore Undercover and as viewed on a video spreading around the internet, two Wicomico County Sheriff's Deputies got involved in a physical altercation, where a large man resisted arrest in a local car dealership.

The incident ended when one of the deputies got a patrol trained K-9 dog and the subject who was resisting, decided to finally comply. That was not before one of those deputies was thrown to the ground and unfortunately injured.

Now, a very serious question that I have after watching the video is are we adequately equipping our deputies here in Wicomico County for their safety?

I learned today that neither one of the deputies involved possessed a taser, which could have been used on the much larger man. Now, tasers are not 100% effective however for most people, the threat of being tased is enough to end the situation.

What is even more concerning is the fact that I have learned that there is only and average of 1 deputy per shift that carries a taser. So, if that one deputy is in Willards, MD and an incident takes place in Mardela, MD, that would be a minimum 25-30 minute trip, for the deputy who is carrying the only taser on the shift.

Does anyone think that is safe? And again, are we making sure our deputies have the right equipment to keep them safe during their tour of duty.

Now, some may say that those tasers are expensive, and I agree. On average, a taser will cost roughly $3,000 per deputy, so not a cheap purchase but are there ways we could have budgeted more accordingly so deputies could be safe on the street?

Like, as an example, the Sheriff's Office purchased 5 Ford Mustangs to use on Patrol. I'm not sure the exact price but I think it is safe to say that they spent a minimum of $50,000 per vehicle and then another $15,000 for additional expenses such as lights, siren, and computer racks.

Therefore, we have a minimum expense of $65,000 for one car, and folks, I would be willing to bet I'm $20K short of that estimate but let's use a very low and reserve number!

What if we didn't buy 5 Ford Mustangs and only purchased 3, and used that extra $130,000 savings to equip every deputy, who is working the road, with tasers, to keep THEM safe! Isn't that what it should be about? Making sure our law enforcement officers are safe?

And let's be real here....why do we even need Ford Mustangs? In fact due to legislation changes and the repeal of LEOBR, if a police officer chases someone and anyone gets hurt or even worse, killed, the police are subject to the attorney general's civilian review board which will likely charge them criminally.

So is this the right equipment even needed for the Wicomico County Sheriff's Office to catch criminals or are these cars just one more thing to dangle in front of the public to convey the whole "look at me" thing???

In my opinion, priorities need to be placed on the Deputies working the road and their safety above ALL!