2024 Ocean City Police Officer of the Year Arrested for Alcohol Related Driving Offenses

Ocean City, MD - On February 8, 2026, at around 2:52 AM, the Maryland State Police came in contact with an individual operating a vehicle going the wrong way in Ocean City, Maryland.

The individual was later identified as Benjamin Ethan Panitch, who is a Town of Ocean City Police Officer and the 2024 Police Officer of the Year.

Panitch was operating a Toyota passenger vehicle on Baltimore Avenue, in the area of 3rd Street in Ocean City, Maryland.

Trooper Cataldi, from the Maryland State Police Berlin Barrack, stopped Panitch and observed behavior and evidence that Panitch was operating the vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Panitch was subsequently arrested and charged with the following:

• TA.21.902.A1-i - Driving vehicle while under the influence of alcohol
• TA.21.902.B1.I - Driving vehicle while impaired by alcohol
• TA.21.901.1.A - Reckless driving vehicle in wanton and willful disregard for safety of persons and property
• TA.21.901.1.B - Negligent driving vehicle in careless and imprudent manner endangering property, life and person
• TA.21.201.A1 - Driver failure to obey properly placed traffic control device instructions
• TA.21.301.A - Failure to drive vehicle on right half of roadway when required
• TA.21.308.A - Driving wrong way--one way street
  
  

Disclosure: All individuals mentioned in this article are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Eastern Shore Undercover® does not express or imply any opinion regarding the incident reported.