In May 2011, Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley was concerned about the quickening pace of that year's homicide rate. The decision was made to focus on outstanding arrest warrants for violent offenders in geographical areas with high crime.

The Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention targeted $500,000 in federal grant money to pay for additional law enforcement officers and extra police hours targeting people with outstanding arrest warrants for violent crimes.

Regardless of what may be said about the moral implications of this plan, it paid off. The agency estimates about 2,200 arrests were made in a three-phase effort over the course of the last seven months of 2011.

State and local law enforcement focused on these three jurisdictions that collectively were host to over 60 percent of 2010 state violent crimes: Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Prince George's County.

Preliminary homicide statistics count 401 murders in the state in 2011, down 25 from the previous year. The state is not contending there is necessarily a link between the arrest program and the decrease in the homicide rate, but officials are pleased all the same.

The success of the arrest program is likely to prompt the state to repeat similar efforts in the future. While preventing violent crime is an admirable goal, it is important that law enforcement efforts are enacted fairly and responsibly. Police and other officials need to take care to follow correct procedure and protect the constitutional rights of anyone accused of a crime.

Source: The Baltimore Sun, "Stepped-up arrest effort in state targeted violent offenders," Arthur Hirsch, Jan. 22, 2012