Carroll County Meet-up 10/11/14

[dist1646]

Word on the street is that Jim DeWees intends to stand up a full time SWAT unit as well as a motorcycle unit, among other grandiose plans - something I specifically asked Pacelli about and which is what led to the mention of militarization. Whatever else Jim DeWees might do should he be elected Sheriff I can all but guarantee that you will see a dramatic increase in traffic enforcement and SWAT call outs. In my opinion, Carroll County doesn't need either. Neither one is going to reverse the tide of crime. The only way to do that is with community involvement and good intelligence gathering.

Agreed! I am totally on board with targeting heroin use in Carroll Co. also. It has become a significant problem in the county and is resulting in increased criminal activity as demonstrated by the rash of robberies in the Eldersburg area. Druggies will commit crime to fund their habit and dealers will use violence to protect their profits and territory. The citizens will suffer! DeWees increased traffic enforcement will only serve as a method of revenue enhancement.

 

[Half-cocked]

Salerno's in Eldersburg(yea I know not central Carroll) has a separate building they use for banquets. The South Carroll Business Association has a luncheon there every month with a decent buffet. Don't know if they are 2A friendly, but hey, our $$ is as green as anybody else's.

Salerno's hosted District 5 Democrat candidate Anita Riley's fundraiser last week.

I don't know if they're 2A friendly or not either, but I sure as hell won't be going there anymore myself.

 

[tsmith1499]

I neglected to mention that I was very happy to put some faces to names. especially glad to meet Fabsroman. Since he practically lives in my backyard!!

 

[NY Transplant]

So, what is the group's overall opinion on Pacelli? Unfortunately I was unable to attend the meetup due to a prior engagement. I don't know anything about Pacelli and what I read and heard about DeWees doesn't impress me much.

 

[PO2012]

So, what is the group's overall opinion on Pacelli? Unfortunately I was unable to attend the meetup due to a prior engagement. I don't know anything about Pacelli and what I read and heard about DeWees doesn't impress me much.

Pacelli is a retired Baltimore City Police Lieutenant. While working for Baltimore City he was assigned to various patrol assignments, served in the mounted unit, was a motorcycle officer, a patrol supervisor, a shift commander and a detective commander. After retiring from the Baltimore City Police Department Pacelli was a corporate head of security and later resigned to become a Carroll County Sheriff's Deputy, a position he holds to this day.

Pacelli has been a sworn Officer longer than DeWees has and he has far more experience when it comes to investigating narcotics and violent crime. DeWees talks about his experience as an investigator while assigned to Barrack G. The reality is that the worst day in the history of Barrack G is better than the best day in any one district in Baltimore City. The drugs that are making their way into Carroll County are coming from Baltimore City as the criminal culture of the City begins to infiltrate the surrounding counties. Having someone who's been a Cop in both Baltimore City and Carroll County is going to be key. The crime problem we're beginning to see here is not a stand alone problem. Baltimore City is reaching into Carroll County. If you treat the problems as though they were separate you'll never get them under control. It's like trying to fight the Mafia while denying the existence of the Commission.

DeWees is going to run the Sheriff's Office like it was his own little fiefdom the way that Tregoning did. How do I know? Because I've talked to Troopers both active and retired and they all say the same thing: Jim DeWees is a great guy but then when pressed they qualify that by saying that he's a politician who will pack the Sheriff's Office with his own cronies. Well, Tregoning did the same thing and we saw how that turned out. Carroll County doesn't need a repeat of Nick Plazio. The FOP endorsed DeWees because he promised the members equipment, pay raises and above all, additional prestige. A lot of Deputies think that if elected DeWees will raise their status in the law enforcement community and that's why they're supporting him. A lot of Troopers think that if elected DeWees will provide them with nice retirement gigs or force the Sheriff's Office to be deferential to MSP. Now this is all well and good but a) there's no money in the Carroll County Budget to finance all of it and b) it has everything to do with enhancing the reputation of the Sheriff's Office and nothing to do with enhancing its effectiveness. Motorcycles and SWAT Teams don't control an ever growing population of addicts who are increasingly turning to distribution and burglary to feed their habit. They also do nothing to curb the growing population of violent criminals migrating from Baltimore City. Most of Baltimore City's population is poor and violent retaliation is common. If you break into a city resident's house the chances of getting any real money or valuables are slim. Carroll County in their view is ripe for the picking. Traffic enforcement isn't going to solve that problem. Dynamic raids aren't going to solve that problem. Knowing the community, developing informants is and getting out of your patrol car and walking foot (a concept which is anathema to the State Police) is what solves these problems. Pacelli patrols the streets of Carroll County right now and has for the last several years. DeWees hasn't pushed a patrol car, so to speak, in over a decade. He has less general police experience than Pacelli, less specific investigative experience than Pacelli and he's been serving in administrative roles while Pacelli's been patrolling the very county in which he wants to serve as Sheriff.

And then of course we have DeWees who stated in the debates that he would enforce SB281 because he didn't want his deputies to be confused. Pacelli has said that he will use his discretion as the Sheriff in reference to SB 281 and that it will not be used against non-career criminals.

DeWees may be a nice guy but I don't want him to be my Sheriff.

 

[yellowsled]

I'm not voting for dewees

 

[NY Transplant]

Pacelli is a retired Baltimore City Police Lieutenant. While working for Baltimore City he was assigned to various patrol assignments, served in the mounted unit, was a motorcycle officer, a patrol supervisor, a shift commander and a detective commander. After retiring from the Baltimore City Police Department Pacelli was a corporate head of security and later resigned to become a Carroll County Sheriff's Deputy, a position he holds to this day.

Pacelli has been a sworn Officer longer than DeWees has and he has far more experience when it comes to investigating narcotics and violent crime. DeWees talks about his experience as an investigator while assigned to Barrack G. The reality is that the worst day in the history of Barrack G is better than the best day in any one district in Baltimore City. The drugs that are making their way into Carroll County are coming from Baltimore City as the criminal culture of the City begins to infiltrate the surrounding counties. Having someone who's been a Cop in both Baltimore City and Carroll County is going to be key. The crime problem we're beginning to see here is not a stand alone problem. Baltimore City is reaching into Carroll County. If you treat the problems as though they were separate you'll never get them under control. It's like trying to fight the Mafia while denying the existence of the Commission.

DeWees is going to run the Sheriff's Office like it was his own little fiefdom the way that Tregoning did. How do I know? Because I've talked to Troopers both active and retired and they all say the same thing: Jim DeWees is a great guy but then when pressed they qualify that by saying that he's a politician who will pack the Sheriff's Office with his own cronies. Well, Tregoning did the same thing and we saw how that turned out. Carroll County doesn't need a repeat of Nick Plazio. The FOP endorsed DeWees because he promised the members equipment, pay raises and above all, additional prestige. A lot of Deputies think that if elected DeWees will raise their status in the law enforcement community and that's why they're supporting him. A lot of Troopers think that if elected DeWees will provide them with nice retirement gigs or force the Sheriff's Office to be deferential to MSP. Now this is all well and good but a) there's no money in the Carroll County Budget to finance all of it and b) it has everything to do with enhancing the reputation of the Sheriff's Office and nothing to do with enhancing its effectiveness. Motorcycles and SWAT Teams don't control an ever growing population of addicts who are increasingly turning to distribution and burglary to feed their habit. They also do nothing to curb the growing population of violent criminals migrating from Baltimore City. Most of Baltimore City's population is poor and violent retaliation is common. If you break into a city resident's house the chances of getting any real money or valuables are slim. Carroll County in their view is ripe for the picking. Traffic enforcement isn't going to solve that problem. Dynamic raids aren't going to solve that problem. Knowing the community, developing informants is and getting out of your patrol car and walking foot (a concept which is anathema to the State Police) is what solves these problems. Pacelli patrols the streets of Carroll County right now and has for the last several years. DeWees hasn't pushed a patrol car, so to speak, in over a decade. He has less general police experience than Pacelli, less specific investigative experience than Pacelli and he's been serving in administrative roles while Pacelli's been patrolling the very county in which he wants to serve as Sheriff.

And then of course we have DeWees who stated in the debates that he would enforce SB281 because he didn't want his deputies to be confused. Pacelli has said that he will use his discretion as the Sheriff in reference to SB 281 and that it will not be used against non-career criminals.

DeWees may be a nice guy but I don't want him to be my Sheriff.

Thanks for the update. What we need is someone who actually works for a living and has vested interest in the county, not another bureaucrat.

 

[Lou45]

I was informed that next time we will have the upstairs room and food will be covered by a second entity. Johannsons Catering will serve us freeing up their staff for normal operations.
So Miss Sarah is willing to help us expand and grow in partnership with her and Johannsons.

At this time I have no desire or interest in seeking out additional venues or other areas. Miss Sarah and Johannsons stepped up in a big way after J&P screwed up our reservations. That deserves loyalty, plain and simple. Those (and I'm not just talking about you SNI as I've had three other PM's) that want us to consider additional venues are encouraged to do so on their own. And if my schedule allows it. I'll attend.

If you had mentioned this ^^^ to me (the upstairs and Johannson's catering), I would have squashed the possibility of another venue as soon as it started. Hey, it's called "communication" my friend.

Thanks for the update. What we need is someone who actually works for a living and has vested interest in the county, not another bureaucrat.

This ^^^ and thanks again PO2012 for your insight.