Baltimore police can’t even handle a minor issue

My 2002 Subaru Outback was the victim of a hit and run at the intersection of North Liberty and East Fayette streets on July 29.

There were multiple witnesses who kindly stopped to make sure my dog and I were okay. The rear panel of the driver’s side had been badly damaged — totaled, really — but my car was still driveable. The police came, took a report, witness names and numbers, and we all went on with our days. One miraculous thing also happened. The offending driver’s license plate had fallen off in the middle of the intersection. The police officer who took my statement took it with him as evidence.

I felt confident that they would track down the driver and I’d get a phone call at some point. I didn’t. I kept checking for the police report online. I was told it could take up to a couple of weeks. A couple of months after the incident, I called again and found out that it had never been approved by a supervising officer and subsequently filed. That has since been rectified, but it’s January, and six months have gone by without any kind of follow-up. There’s still a huge dent in my car because it would cost nearly $4,000 to repair.

Yes, there are much bigger fish to fry in a city with one of the highest murder rates in the country, but even inaction on minor cases such as this one are indicative of poor policing. The Baltimore Police Department must do better.

Lee Thompson, Belmont, N.C.