Prince George's County Legislative Branch Newsletter - District 8 Update

Updating District 8 Residents on issues impacting your community with recent reports provided at Community Association Meetings by residents and police departments.

WEATHER-RELATED EMERGENCIES

Remember to park on the left side of the road so plows can push snow to the right without covering storm drains.

 

PUBLIC SAFETY IN DISTRICT 8

• Air BNB’s are NOT legal in Prince George’s County until October 2019. If an Air BNB is operating in your neighborhood, contact Prince George’s County Department of Permitting, Inspections and Enforcement Inspector T. Peterson, or visit the department web page for more information. 
• To guard against carjacking, please do not leave vehicle keys in the ignition, especially while pumping gas.
• Police report a rise in the incidents of burglary in the Rosaryville community, and note several burglaries involving suspects who gained access to homes using a garage door opener left in a vehicle parked outside of the garage, entering the homes through an unlocked garage door. Please make sure purses, wallets and garage door openers are hidden from view, vehicle doors are locked, and the ignition is turned off.
• The theft of Handicap Placards is on the rise. Police are working with MVA, HOA’s and Civic Associations to replace the placards with Handicapped Stickers to be placed in vehicle windows.  This is a proposal to reduce theft.
• Items can be bought and sold on a website called “Let Go.” Please be careful when meeting with people you connect with on this site.  This practice presents an opportunity for crime.  When an item is exchanged for the money, some sellers have snatched the item back and run off.  Please make sure your transaction is conducted in a public place surrounded by others.
• Be mindful of tow trucks that appear to be just riding through your community. Local police in District 8 want you to contact them if you see such tow trucks, which have been used to steal cars from neighborhoods.   Hondas and Toyotas are targets.
• Please make use of wheel locks or contact local police to learn more about the Operation ID Program to reduce the theft of vehicle tires and rims.

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CRIME

Arrests have been made in two homicides occurring in District 8 communities. A suspect from Fort Washington was apprehended in the homicide in the 8500 block of Allentown Road last December.  There was also an arrest in the homicide that happened on Piscataway Road.

ROUTE 210 - INDIAN HEAD HIGHWAY UPDATE

On January 24, 2019, Thomas Hawkes, the suspect in the December 30^th fatal accident that took the lives of three children from the Mejia family, was indicted on several charges, including three counts of vehicular manslaughter because of gross negligence, and two counts of causing life-threatening injuries by motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol. Here’s the GoFundMe link to help the Mejia family: https://www.gofundme.com/the-mejia-family-fund   

DID YOU KNOW?

• Your local Fire Department will provide and install one Smoke Detector.  Call (301)864-SAFE
• The Red Cross provides and installs up to three Smoke Detectors. Reach out to your local Red Cross Agency.  Visit  https://www.redcross.org
• Consider inviting your local Police Department to perform a Safety Check of your home. (example: if your bushes are too high they may inform you that the height of the bushes can be a blind spot and pose a danger.) If Encourage seniors and people who live alone. 

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