Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, through his Office of Crime Control and Prevention, has awarded $7.2 million to the Baltimore Police Department, including nearly $3 million for neighborhood foot patrols.

The grants are a continuation of initiatives started by the governor in 2007 to help suppress violent crime in Baltimore and provide “officers on the street highly visible to criminals and welcomed by neighborhood residents.”

A $2 million Neighborhood Community Policing grant will help pay the salaries of about 25 police officers who work with community groups in activities such as Citizens on Patrol and Operation Crime Watch.

Officers in Cars

A $2.8 million Neighborhood Foot Patrol grant will underwrite an unspecified number of officers on foot patrols “throughout communities to bolster public trust, significantly reduce violent crime and improve public safety in Baltimore City,” according to the grant description.

The absence of foot patrols in most neighborhoods (with the notable exception of the Inner Harbor and nearby tourist enclaves) has been a sore spot in hearings by the City Council’s Public Safety Committee.

Police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts has blamed the problem of “officers not getting out of their cars” on contract language with the Fraternal Order of Police. He has pledged to beef-up foot patrols in special enforcement zones and as part of his community policing strategy.

A $2.4 million Violent Crime Reduction-Drug Interdiction grant will pay for about seven sergeants and 20 detectives who “will eliminate open-air drug markets, dismantle violent drug organizations, dismantle gang recruitment capabilities and debrief all arrestees, forwarding information to other units,” according to the grant document.

The one-year grants, which began on July 1, 2014 and will continue through June 30, 2015, will be formally accepted by the Board of Estimates at tomorrow’s (September 10) meeting.