County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Welcome to Pittman and Friends. The curiously probing, sometimes awkward but always revealing conversations between your host, Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman - that's me - and whatever brave and willing public servant, community leader, or elected official I can find who has something to say that you should hear. This podcast is provided as a public service of Anne Arundel County, so don't expect me to get all partisan here. This is about the age-old art of government of, by, and for the people. Al right, welcome everybody. I'm here today with my friend, Anne Arundel County Chief of Police, Amal Awad.

Chief Amal Awad :

Welcome. Thank you, Mr. Pittman. Thank you for having me.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So, we got a lot to talk about. We've been through a lot together. It's been a pretty amazing time. But can you just start by telling us the scope of the Anne Arundel County Police Department, what it is, how it's organized, who it is?

Chief Amal Awad :

So may I use my language? You're familiar with my language. I describe our department as the best damn police department in this country. We can bleep it, go ahead. Best damn police department in this country. Um here here, very proud of our men and women. Um, obviously, the agency um is run by an agency head, myself chief of police. I have a total of two deputy chiefs, one assistant chief, um several majors and several captains. That's the rank structure, and then we get down to the officers who are assigned to each of our district stations. We have four stations throughout Anne Arundel County, all led by a district commander or a captain, and then we have various divisions within our respective four bureaus that are also led by captains or commanders.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Okay. Okay, chain of command.

Chief Amal Awad :

Yes, sir.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

And, it is an organization that respects the chain of command..

Chief Amal Awad :

Yes, sir.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

And it's very important that they do so.

Chief Amal Awad :

We're a paramilitary organization, sir.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Al right, al right. Well, you know who's at the top of the chain of command, right.

Chief Amal Awad :

Well, ultimately. Yes, sir. You're my boss. I've answered to the county executive. In fact, you hired me. Thank you.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Okay, al right, chain in command. But I've noticed there's a lot of hugging that goes on in this paramilitary organization, and y'all are a friendly bunch.

Chief Amal Awad :

Well, it's important for our men and women. I understand, yes, we are a paramilitary organization, but we're also a leadership team. A nd, as myself, the leader, someone who cares about our men and women like, truly cares, believes in them and loves them.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Absolutely, and to me you are also. You're a local government in the community. A lot of people, their only interaction with people in the government may be police. Sometimes, fire. It may not be their best day, but you're the face of local government as well.

Chief Amal Awad :

Yes.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So I always remind the graduates at the ceremonies of that. That they're part of local government, and we're proud to have them. So, anyway, how many officers did you say? You didn't say?

Chief Amal Awad :

So I didn't, but effectively.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Not enough.

Chief Amal Awad :

Yes, we've had conversations about that, but our current authorized strength is 809 officers. Right now, we're approximately 39, I believe, officers shy of being fully staffed. With the next budget, we'll have an additional two positions, so that'll take us to 811. I really would like to get to an even number. Odd numbers are so awkward. So you're talking sworn positions. So that'll take us to 811.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Yeah, so you're talking sworn positions. Al right, sworn positions, because those new positions that we put in there. I guess two are sworn. Three are not.

Chief Amal Awad :

Yes, and then we have in excess of 200 professional staff. So they're non-sworn employees, but they too are very much a part of our everyday operations and what we do.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So that's about a 1,000 people.

Chief Amal Awad :

Critical, yes. A little over 1,000.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Okay, and for the sworn positions, could you tell us about the training that they go through? Because I know I'm really really proud of our academy down in Davidsonville, and I know you are too.

Chief Amal Awad :

Our training. Thank you, Mr. Pittman. Our training. We have extensive, obviously extensive training. It's an eight-month police academy. Generally speaking, we welcome other agencies, law enforcement agencies from within Anne Arundel County to send recruits through our police academy because, well, they're our neighbors and our partners. And then we have jurisdictions from outside of Anne Arundel, like Queen Anne or some municipalities in Prince George's, who asked and paid to send their officers through our police academy because it really is one of the best police academies in the country, top notch. Some of the training, the critical training, beyond what people would assume traffic stops, beyond what people would assume traffic stops. One that I know, that I support.

Chief Amal Awad :

People are concerned about use of force and how police officers apply use of force.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

De-escalation.

Chief Amal Awad :

De-escalation, et cetera.

Chief Amal Awad :

And, the Police Executive Research Forum several years ago got with several police departments throughout the country and developed the ICAT program, ICAT training, so that ICAT stands for Integrating Communications, Assessment and Tactics, and essentially our officers operate off of. It's not a use of force wheel but a de-escalation wheel to make critical decisions in those moments where we're met with someone who may be dealing with a mental health crisis or a person who may be armed with anything other than a firearm. And the point is to, as our SWAT or emergency operators are trained to do, is to kind of slow things down and bring down the temperament so you can kind of negotiate your way to either disarm the person. Or, if the person is, you know, having a crisis, just trying to relate to them, connect with them and get them to, to um, to a place where they can get some help.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Yeah, I will say that when I came into this job, I had been pulled over for tickets and had various interactions with police officers.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

But I didn't really get to know many police officers, and I think most people know that county executive comes with a job as a security detail. You get driven around by police officers, you get to know them pretty well and you get to hear stories about some of their experiences out on the beat. The training, how the training's evolved, and I've got to say, I just never had any idea how much of the training really it's. I mean they do psychological first aid or mental health first aid as part of it.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

And then some go further and become part of our crisis response teams, which are world-renowned, renowned, the best in the world and and, uh, it's, it's. I mean, you talk about some jobs, you learn customer service. You go way beyond that to become a police officer. And, yeah, and I have asked police officers um, you know what? I remember one officer who had just come out of the academy and I interviewed him for something I can't remember what it was. A video or something, and he said his goal was to be the best police officer in Anne Arundel County. And I said, well, what does that mean? And he said I want to be the officer where every interaction I have, every single day with anybody in the public, it makes their day better.

Chief Amal Awad :

Good, good.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

I mean, that's a different kind of an attitude than I thought police officers were trained to have.

Chief Amal Awad :

And when you look at our cops they're well-rounded officers. Most of them are invested here. Most of them grew up here. Most of them raised their families here. Their kids attend our schools and, again, they take pride in building those relationships. They understand that the vast majority of our residents and business owners love us, want to see us and appreciate us, and they do go out of their way sometimes to show us exactly that.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

We've gotten pretty far into this, but I want to talk about you. I want to ask about how you ended up in this job, starting with picking the career of wanting to be a police officer.

Chief Amal Awad :

I just shared this story with a contingency of women with the Maryland State Police and I asked them. I said I could talk about leadership all day long. You can read a book all day long, but it's. I put those things aside and I look at how I relate to folks. Right, and it boils down to relationships.

Chief Amal Awad :

But they wanted to hear about Amal, not the leadership side of the house, because we learned that through the academy and all the professional development trainings. But yes, those are several tools in our toolbox. But it boils down to the person, the human being, the heart of that individual, right? So, as a young child, since you want me to go back to childhood, when my father left our family, my mother was a homemaker. They were married. He made a decision, you know, to choose other things, other people, and he divorced our family in its entirety. And suddenly I went from being a nine-year-old kid to, as the second oldest child, a co-parent in my household, as my mother again being a homemaker.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

How many kids?

Chief Amal Awad :

I'm one of seven.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Seven.

Chief Amal Awad :

One of seven. So my eldest brother, whom I love dearly, was a very handsome fellow and was growing into his looks. So I got stuck at home, number two in charge, and I helped raise my brothers and sisters. And it wasn't easy. I didn't know how to be a parent. I'm a kid, right, but I learned to navigate that space. We went from being a middle-class family to a family that was now on the lower economic income side of the house, living where so a couple places. Initially, we had to.

Chief Amal Awad :

When we left, we packed our family van with just what we had on our backs and drove from Illinois to Washington, DC, where my aunt owned a home. And we stayed with her for our first real year back here in Washington, DC until my mother could get on her feet and find a decent job to provide for her kids. And I watched her, you know, interview and this is in the 70s, late 70s, early 80s, just struggling to find employment. And she finally landed a job, a federal job, and again into the 80s, and we moved from my aunt's house to a place in northeast 61st and Clay Streets. Not too far from the Prince George's County line, and it was tough the job that my mother took, you know, not very high means. Not a high paying job. I know that we leaned on public assistance until she could get in a better position. But I appreciated her work ethic because she always emphasized with us to, you know, have hold on to our faith and to rely on no one but ourselves and God. And so I watched her use all these principles to help her get ahead in her life. Now, obviously, she never accomplished what her children have accomplished, because things were a lot different back then for a Black woman.

Chief Amal Awad :

Not too long after we moved there, she was riffed by former President Reagan, his administration. And again, public assistance, you know, is something we relied on. And just again, being the second eldest and watching my mom, you know, deal with all these issues, she still made sure we stayed together, that we looked after one another. I protected my siblings, you know, because we lived in elements criminal, you know. We went from again living in a decent neighborhood to now we're amongst, you know, folks who are committing crimes, et cetera, in Northeast DC. And you know, I just felt like I had to protect my siblings from some of those environs. And then we ended up moving into Maryland to a better space, but still the same issues in that neighborhood where, you know, people are selling drugs. Gun violence hadn't really erupted as much back then, but serious assault, stabbings, and the drugs were prolific. I do remember that as a kid. But again, you know, I'm the second eldest and I took on responsibility at an early age, and that's where I think leadership for me began to develop.

Chief Amal Awad :

And then, as I'm entering into my teen years and attending high school. It's interesting. Two of my teachers, Mr. and Mrs. Russell, took an interest in me because they saw a light in me that I did not. I'm a child. I didn't see it. My mom's doing her best to raise us, but her time is limited. She's going to work, she's catching the bus to get to work, and then having to come home in the later hours.

Chief Amal Awad :

And Mr. and Mrs. Russell would invite me to their home on the weekends, and I would spend time with them. They were a mixed- race couple, very kind people, educated people. They sent me, funded out of their own pockets, to. It was called the Hugh O'Brien Youth Leadership Academy in the summer months. And again, you know, people see a light in you. Like I served on student government. I was on the basketball team, like always just a part of something bigger than myself for a kid. Right, to keep me engaged so I wouldn't get caught up in what was going on in my neighborhood around me. And that was pretty much the pattern for my siblings as well, except one.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Who didn't do as well?

Chief Amal Awad :

She didn't. She succumbed to the neighborhood, and I shared that with you when I interviewed for the position. Yeah, yeah, and I think when my mom passed, that dark spiral. And again, she was using, and she didn't make it. She passed away very, very early on, right before I got here, actually. So um.

Chief Amal Awad :

I can relate to folks. I can relate to folks. I can relate to their, their hearts, their pain, their struggles, because I lived it. I grew up in what people would consider a distressed community, or community in need of.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So can we jump to your interview for this job?

Chief Amal Awad :

Sure, Mr. Pittman.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So we needed a police chief? Yes, sir, and your name had come up by a very high level person in our command staff acting chief at the time. In fact, who had worked with you in Prince George's County. You had been how many years in Prince George's County?

Chief Amal Awad :

23. Getting 23 years of my youth. My hair was still dark before I left Prince George's County.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Y'all can't see, but there's a little bit of gray in there.

Chief Amal Awad :

Almost snow whitish.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

We'll probably put a picture up that doesn't show it. But yeah, so heard your name. Checked your name out. Rave reviews. You had spent some time in the county as chief of staff for the chief, right?

Chief Amal Awad :

Yes, yes. When I retired from Prince George's County that first year, Kevin Davis was our chief of police here. At that time.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

You worked for him.

Chief Amal Awad :

Yep, he onboarded me as his chief of staff, so that's how I got to know our staff pretty much um, my first time around.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Okay, okay, and then you had left, and become a chief in?

Chief Amal Awad :

Well, I left, and I had my mom for three, almost three years. Put my career on hold, and took care of my mom.

Chief Amal Awad :

My mom took care of me and blessed me in ways I can't even put into words now. But yes, and then an opportunity was announced in the city of Hyattsville. I get a couple phone calls from folks saying, "hey, you should think about applying for this position. And I applied at the time. I was actually I thank God for Anne Arundel County because my mom had surgery at Anne Arundel Medical. I stayed with her at the hospital because she had dementia, and I had to make decisions for her and then her rehabilitation took place. It was the second genesis out here in Wall Chapel, and again, I stayed with her. I would not leave her alone on an air mattress. And I learned of this position. My brother flies in and allows me to take the time to go home, conduct my research. Apply for this position. It was due on a Friday. I'm home all day doing my research. Make my submission by 4.59 pm. It was due at 5 pm and then lost in my emails is this notification that they want to interview me and I get there.

Chief Amal Awad :

Compete against, I'm told, five guys. Not the burger guys, but five guys, yeah,

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

And we had some really, really strong candidates and experienced candidates and uh, but we brought together a panel that included, um, I think we had representation from uh, NAAC, we had representation from Fraternal Order of Police. We had representation, of course, from my office and even the command staff. So we wanted to make sure that this hiring process was something that had broad-based support. This is a very important position and you stood out, and I remember I was a little concerned. People would say, okay, Pittman is hiring this chief because African-American woman, LGBTQ. Oh yeah, she checks all the boxes for that liberal guy.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

The reality is, I wanted to hire a chief who, of course, would have talent at engaging with community all parts of Anne Arundel County community. But even more than that, I knew that the chief had to be a leader of the officers and the people in blue and had to have served for many years on the streets in their shoes. And I heard you describe some difficult situations that you had where community was protesting around your Hyattsville Police Department, and how you evaluated situations, and you weren't afraid to stand up for your officers. You also weren't afraid to stand up for values and community when they were right, and I was impressed by all of that. And so, it was not a hard decision in the end.

Chief Amal Awad :

Thank you. You know, it was certainly an honor. And everywhere I've been, whether it's Prince George's County Police Department or the City of Hyattsville Police Department, I always treated folks with respect. I learned the most about engaging with community under the tutelage of Melvin High, who was my police chief and then subsequently, the sheriff. But he taught us, he brought community policing to Prince George's County. He's the grandfather of police, community policing in my, in my book. And that's what we really learned to get out in the community with folks, walk the community with folks, identify concerns with the community members by being present with them. And then, beyond that, you know, sitting down at the table and just problem- solving. Hey, here's the problem. How can we work together? What resources do we need to, you know, resolve this issue? So I learned those basics in Prince George's County. I took them with me to the city of Hyattsville, and began pretty much doing the same thing, building up on community policing there, and again brought the experiences from a smaller jurisdiction like Hyattsville, where the relationships were more intimate, and brought that forward here to Anne Arundel County. And yes, there were some very challenging moments in the city of Hyattsville. We had an officer involved shooting. It was the first fatality in the city's history. And navigating through that and I have to thank my former city administrator and the mayor because they journeyed with me throughout that entire process. And, for the first time in my career, I was a part of something you don't typically see police chiefs do, and I sat down with the community, with my mayor, my city administrator, and they brought forward their issues, their concerns. I listened. I responded. You know, there was, I could feel the pain and concern and some of the trauma, because people came from throughout Prince George's County proper to bring their and air their grievances there because they hadn't had that opportunity. And it was a lot. It was tough, um, but you know, I again, you know, talked to them, sat down, heard from them. They heard from me. They would ask questions. I would offer them explanations, and by the end of the meeting, I got a standing ovation. It was shocking, but it was tough. There were some tough, pointed questions, and we got through it. But it wasn't about getting through it. It was like: What are the next steps? And then move forward, and not even what a year later. That was 2019, 2020, George Floyd is killed. He's murdered, and suddenly, you know, we find ourselves in a position where the respect we had worked so hard as police officers who care about our communities was diminished in one by one person. And don't get me wrong, there were other cases prior to him. But we never actually witnessed someone applying pressure to someone's neck, and I don't even say his name, um, but to George Floyd's neck and hearing George Floyd beg for his mother, beg for mercy. Um, it was gut-wrenching, heart-wrenching for all of us. So much so I reached out to my siblings and was like I we've.

Chief Amal Awad :

I am sorry, I've never experienced this in my lifetime, nor did I ever think that within my profession we would bear witness to something so horrific. But I'm sorry, like that's all I can say to them. And then you know, the community just not all of the community, but a vocal majority seemed to just turn deaf ears to us, like our word was no longer credible. All the hard work, um, and the passion and commitment and the foundation we'd laid in terms of just building those relationships were gone. And so then I transitioned, you know, in Hyattsville, and they're demonstrating two courthouses in um, Prince George's County, Hyattsville and Upper Marlboro. And obviously, I'm in the city.

Chief Amal Awad :

Hyattsville and Upper Marlboro, and obviously I'm in the city of Hyattsville in this time, and there were demonstrations, and some of them were demonstrators, were vocal, they didn't want the police there. I was in the middle of the crowd and just listening and hearing, you know, the chanting, the anger, the pain, like I'm a Black woman too, right. But unfortunately, and I've spoken about the duality. Sometimes we are judged because we wear a uniform.

Chief Amal Awad :

And, yes, there's this brotherhood and sisterhood and the fraternalism within the profession, but at the end of the day, we're human beings and none of us condone what we saw on that on, on that horrible.

Chief Amal Awad :

Uh, that was May 26, I believe.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Yep, yeah, so, um, yeah, so you can't. You came in, uh, after that. A lot of things happened since then. Uh, I think most of them positive in our case that, that we've seen our department evolve. We've seen you bring in new leadership in the command staff. I won't say you're perfect. I mean, nobody's perfect.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

We do get evaluated by CALEA. They do these assessments. I had heard that the last time they'd been by they were pretty complimentary. I met with a couple officers that were up here doing their assessments and and they were saying that we'd said it, your, your department, has set a higher bar for others to reach, that they were learning things that could be done and they were just, they were very impressed. What's, what's your assessment of Anne Arundel County? I mean, you've already said we're that could be done, and they were just, they were very impressed. What's your assessment of Anne Arundel County? I mean you've already said we're the best damn police department in the country. But you know what? You talk a lot to the other leaders in the region. You get pretty good comparison. What are we good at, and what are we maybe not so good at? How are we stacking up?

Chief Amal Awad :

I mean, our engagement with folks. I think that our officers understand how important, critical it is to build relationships. You just said something about leaders or not being perfect. I'm quoting a chief in DC. I just heard him say this, but I believe it, and I've demonstrated it throughout my time here, and prior to even coming here is he made a very good point that leaders are not perfect. But leaders, true leaders are present and I'm intentional and I demonstrate what I expect and I set the expectations. Officers know what is expected from them by myself, command staff, their leadership teams, and I think I pride myself on watching again how our folks engage with the folks we serve, how willing they are to help others.

Chief Amal Awad :

In terms of fundraising efforts, you've seen it yourself with these programs that you know Police, unity, tour they raise all this money for families of fallen heroes, fallen officers, Special Olympics Maryland. I've mentioned this before, but you know, officers just willing to get out here. Raise big money so that adults with disabilities are able to partake in these games and enjoy themselves and be themselves for a moment and compete in the spirit of competition. But it's humbling when I visit other jurisdictions. I just went to church at St Patrick's just the other day and I'm walking through the crowd and there are multiple jurisdictions there and to have people say, "hey, chief, hi, how are you doing? They want to shake my hand. I'm not their chief, but they know who I am. But it's based on what we do out here. I'm constantly hearing feedback from retirees and others about what a great department we are and just how proud our men and women are of our agency.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So, yeah, I'm pretty proud as well, and it is really clear that the officers want to do good, make the world a better place. I assume that had something to do with you choosing the profession early on in life.

Chief Amal Awad :

arly, I was inspired by two officers that worked for the Metropolitan Police Department, and you know they went out there and served. They would share their stories, and you know I was listening. I was still in college but I wasn't ,and just hearing them share. You know, I was like, wow. You know, I kind of grew up in a couple neighborhoods, rough neighborhoods, and you know I'd like to help out. You know, I'd like to help do my part for the greater good, and that's really what inspired me to apply to the Prince George's County Police Department.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Can you give us a sense of, I mean it's? I don't want to paint a pretty picture about how wonderful everything is in the police department and that it's all roses and doing good works in the community. Because there's also the really hard work, the really dangerous work. One of the things that you came to us a couple years back was a proposal to do technology to make it possible to monitor crime scenes as they're happening and help officers to be safer, and increase the chances of getting convictions, and increase the chances of actually catching the perpetrator. And through this Real-Time Information Center, and I know that this didn't come out of. It wasn't just your idea out of the blue. You got this from other jurisdictions. You've been around the country, and you've learned how they've done things. So now, we have a Real-Time Information Center. But it's really essential that we integrate our work with Baltimore City, Prince George's County, DC, the whole region, Howard County. Can you tell us what some of those challenges are, and are we getting better?

Chief Amal Awad :

In terms of challenges?

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

For us In terms of being more effective at making life safer for people on the streets?

Chief Amal Awad :

So, the Real-Time Information Center actually was born. Born from, coming from Prince George's County. We had a full-time fusion center, but I didn't see our fusion center meeting the end game or goal. And so, I shared with my staff. You know, here's what the concept of the fusion center is. But we need to get one location where information is streamlined into that center, that hub, and then we need to get that to our cops immediately. And so they began their research and discovered throughout the country that we went and benchmarked several agencies on real-time crime centers, and that's essentially how our Real-Time Information Center was born.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So there's all this technology out there with actual camera footage. I know some of it goes into the RTIC so that they can do their real-time work, but tell us what goes in.

Chief Amal Awad :

So when a citizen places a call for assistance 911, if we have CCTV camera access in that area. If we have CCTV camera access in that area, once we receive that information, the RTIC is able to activate that CCTV camera, specifically to observe what's going on so they can provide that information to our officers who are coming into the area.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So those are police department-owned cameras that have been put in hot spots, right.

Chief Amal Awad :

That's correct. And there are also businesses who partner with our police department and they have allowed us access to their cameras. It's not something we don't monitor, any of these cameras. Everything is 911 incident-based. So if a business calls 911 and they have a shoplifter or someone attempting to rob and they manage to get to the phone to call us, we're able to go access that camera and go live and get that information in real time to our police officers who are coming in.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Al right, and they're also. I know from watching some videos that if the police helicopter is in the air and has cameras, they can access that, and they can also access the officer's body-worn cameras, correct.

Chief Amal Awad :

That's correct and every bit of information that comes in. You've identified it as a game changer. It helps us. It's a coordinated response to help us catch folks who are intent on harming our community members.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Excellent.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So, last thing. But last thing, this will be released on Police Week, and Police Week is, I believe, about honoring the work that police officers do, remembering fallen police officers in the line of duty. But I want to ask you to tell us what that is and how people can get involved in the purpose of it, and why it's important. But, also, make a pitch for the career. We need more officers. It's not an easy career to recruit for.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Tell us why, and why people should join.

Chief Amal Awad :

So, as we're all aware, nationally we're experiencing staffing shortages throughout the profession. And the narrative has been a negative one about our profession, and we are not that evil beast that some have created. We're opposite from that. Most of us here are compassionate, we care. There are hearts beating behind our badges, and we need the help. We need people who are service-oriented, who want to make a difference in the community, who love their communities, and really want to help people improve their lots in life so that they're not out here committing crimes or holding folks who are committing crimes accountable. It's not okay to hurt anyone from our community. It's not okay to put a gun in an 82-year-old woman's face. Like that's not okay, and I don't know where folks have learned that. But we have to help people make better decisions, and when I say we, I'm talking about the community and the parents. It's not just on local government. We have a role, but we all have a stake here if we want to see all of us realize our full potential and live the lives we're intended to live.

Chief Amal Awad :

National Police Week is essentially a week that is dedicated every year for all of the police officers who've been killed in the line of duty, this year on the memorial wall. There will be 147 new names inscribed on the wall. More than almost 60 officers have been killed by gunfire, of that, 147 cops. It's something we know is a reality within our profession. Amongst all the, I've read where the average person may experience two to three traumatic experiences in their lifetimes. Your average police officer, specifically law enforcement officers, are experiencing hundreds, hundreds throughout their careers, not just their lifetimes. That's a lot to process, unpack, deal with, but we still show up. We still suit up and boot up and we still serve. We serve everyone. We don't get to pick and choose who we serve, but you really have to have the heart and mindset to serve others and be willing, if necessary, to lay down your life for another.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

That's a um, um, you're not only recruiting, but you're recruiting people who have a lot of heart and a lot of passion.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

So, um, I, uh, I will do everything I can to help with that recruitment. Because I know we are short, 30-some officers, and we need to grow beyond that as well and fill out the department. So I also just want to end by thanking, during Police Week, all of our officers in Anne Arundel County. All of the public safety officers across the state, and the nation, really for their service, and encourage young people to consider this career to serve their community. So, thank you for your service, Chief. Thank you.

Chief Amal Awad :

Thank you for the opportunity to sit down with you, and thank you for blessing me and my family.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

Blessing you?

Chief Amal Awad :

Yes, absolutely. It's a blessing to serve. I hope the right people hear that message. It's truly a blessing. It is a blessing to serve.

County Executive Steuart Pittman:

I feel the same way. Well, thank you everybody for joining us, and check your little subscribe button if you haven't already. Make sure you do, so that you get notified about who our next guest is. And we just keep seeming. I'm really enjoying these things, I got to say. Having a half an hour to talk to amazing public servants like you is a blessing in itself. So thank you.

Chief Amal Awad :

Thank you.