MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – The Myrtle Beach Police Department is in the process of conducting an internal review of how they deploy officers and what special teams are needed to help keep community members safe.
City leaders acknowledge the need for more police officers, so the goal is to review what resources the department has, how those tools are being used, and where there’s an opportunity to better serve Myrtle Beach neighborhoods.
“We will not tolerate acts of violence,” commits Myrtle Beach Police Chief Amy Prock. “We’ve had a rough couple of weeks. We’ve had a rough spring, but I think what everybody needs to understand is that we’re going to work together to make sure that these issues are addressed.”
Chief Prock, who was just sworn into office Monday, told the City of Myrtle Beach the department is in a transition period. After multiple shootings, community members were anxious to see what the response would be from city leaders and law enforcement.
Lt. Joey Crosby says they’re currently conducting an internal review to see if they’re able to better deploy resources.
“You look at the size of the area,” explains Lt. Crosby. “What is the population of it? Is it residential, commercial, what are the amount of calls for service that we have in that area and how many officers do we have employed in that area right now.”
Crosby says after reviewing the data, the department will work on adding specialized units.
In the last two years, the department focused on taking drugs off the street as heroin moved into grocery stores parking lots, neighborhoods, and public parks. The department doesn’t have a specialized narcotics unit, but it is a consideration for the future of the law enforcement office.
“That’s something that we’ll look at while we’re doing this comprehensive review,” confirms Lt. Crosby. “Is that a unit that we need to add? Is there additional resources that we need to add? Is there a different type of unit that we’ve not thought about previously that we could add? So, again, it’s a comprehensive review, and we’re just looking at all of the information based on the calls for service that we respond to and what we have going on here within our city.”
Lt. Crosby says during the audit, the department will look at data pulled from calls for service, working with a crime analyst, and with officers out on the street to see what changes are needed most. The police department also needs help from the community.
“The next part of this is also that information that she (Chief Prock) talked about with the communication piece,” explains Lt. Crosby. “It’s very vital for us to hear back from the citizens and our business community and have them to play a part in this as well.”
The review is still in the preliminary stages and right now, Lt. Crosby couldn’t say exactly where they plan to add additional officers in the city.
The internal review will be complete as one of Chief Prock’s first 90 day goals for the department.
