Crime rates are falling in Maryland, something that Gov. Wes Moore attributes to the improvements and continual investments in technology.

Moore visited the Anne Arundel County Police Department’s Real-Time Information Center in Millersville on Thursday, using its technology as an example for Maryland’s crime-prevention facilities.

“The numbers don’t lie,” Moore said in his news conference. “Progress is happening, and partnership is producing progress.”

Homicide rates have fallen significantly, Moore said. According to the FBI crime data explorer, a decade ago, there were 45 recorded homicides in June 2016 in Maryland. This June, eight were recorded.

Last June, 2,093 violent crimes were reported across the state. This June, 544 were reported, the data explorer shows.

Anne Arundel County has also been experiencing lower crime rates. As of last August, non-contact shootings are down 42%, personal robberies are down 46% and commercial robberies are down 50%. Police department spokesperson Justin Mulcahy previously attributed the crime rate drops partially to the opening of the Real-Time Information Center in January 2025.

Moore said his administration has delivered a record number of funds to promote public safety across the state. Anne Arundel County has received $25 million in state funds for safety in the past two years, he said, with $174,000 going toward the Real-Time Information Center.

County police Capt. John Poole explained the process behind the operation of live body-worn camera streaming feeds for both officer and victim protection.

“This Real-Time Information room has been a game changer,” Poole told Moore. “We have a window where … every one of the icons denotes where an officer is located.”

Poole also elaborated on the license plate reader program, which has evolved since its implementation in 2012. Through the use of artificial intelligence, the surveillance program is now able to scan license plates faster, making it easier to catch suspects through the smallest amount of information, like vehicle descriptions and partial plates, Poole said.

While some previously expressed privacy and data collection concerns with scanners, Moore told the Capital Gazette Thursday that he was “encouraged” by the means in which privacy was balanced with the way information was collected.

“Every single approach and decision has been taken with privacy at the forefront,” he said. “I was very encouraged by the briefings that we received by law enforcement … here in Anne Arundel County.”

License plate reader data remains stored for 30 days, unless it is part of an investigation, according to the police department’s website. Any information gathered through the readers is not subject to disclosure under the Maryland Public Information Act, per state safety law.

County Police Chief Amal E. Awad said the collaboration between the county and local government has changed crime rates for the better.

“In collaboration with our federal, state, local and community partners, we’ve reduced both violent and property crimes here in the county,” she said. “Together, we are saving lives.”

Moore told the Capital Gazette that this center encourages him to continue investing in technological assets throughout the state.

“We saw today how local, state and federal partnership is driving down violent crimes and protecting our people. We saw what happens when you deploy the right tools and the right technology … to be able to make our community safer,” he said in the news conference.

__________

© 2026 The Capital (Annapolis, Md.).

Visit www.hometownannapolis.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.