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DPSCS' mission is to protect the public, our employees and those under our supervision.

Governor Martin O'Malley

Lt. Governor Anthony G. Brown

DPSCS Secretary Gary D. Maynard

The Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services teamed up with the city of Westminster to celebrate the installation of more than 200 ADA-compliant curbs, built with help from DPSCS inmates. Check out our Facebook page to see more Public Safety Works pictures!

This Month's Featured Stories:

DPSCS Internal Investigation Unit Staff (IIU) Doubles with Reorganization/Expansion

MCE Meat Plant Teams Up with Bea Gaddy to Feed Baltimore

ECI Inmates Rebuilding Century-Old Skipjack

keeping communities safe

DPSCS Internal Investigation Unit Staff (IIU) Doubles with Reorganization/Expansion

A calculated reorganization and expansion effort will increase the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services' (DPSCS) Internal Investigative Unit (IIU) staff by 91%. The addition of 32 new positions- 16 investigative positions and 13 intelligence positions as well as 3 support staff will help streamline intelligence gathering and investigative operations and strengthen security efforts throughout.

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believing in human capital

MCE Meat Plant Teams Up with Bea Gaddy to Feed Baltimore

Each year in the City of Baltimore, tens of thousands enjoy a hot holiday meal thanks to the legacy of a woman named Bea Gaddy, and a little help from a group of inmates at Maryland Correctional Institution- Hagerstown.

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public safety works

ECI Inmates Rebuilding Century-Old Skip-jack

One of the true treasures of Maryland's Eastern Shore is the skipjack, a working waterman's boat unique to the region.

On Deal Island in Somerset County this fall, inmates from the Eastern Correctional Institution Annex are actually rebuilding the skipjack Kathryn, a historic craft built in Crisfield in 1901. Designated a National Historic Landmark Vessel, the Kathryn is being rebuilt thanks to the Coastal Heritage Alliance and a $200,000 grant.

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DPSCS Internal Investigation Unit Staff (IIU) Doubles with Reorganization/Expansion

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Currently, IIU overseas all DPSCS Intelligence activity including criminal/corruption cases, homicides and suicides within the institutions. Nearly doubling the staff will not only help lower investigative caseloads on day to day oversight, but allow added efforts in the areas of research, intelligence, polygraph testing and cell phone extraction and analyzation. By gleaning more information, The Department will be better equipped to stop illegal activity before it happens.

The move highlights the Departments dedication to reduce corruption within Maryland by increasing investigative measures, maximize intelligence gathering capabilities and reducing the influx of contraband.

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MCE Meat Plant Teams Up with Bea Gaddy to Feed Baltimore

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Over the past 25 plus years, inmate meat cutters in training with The Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services prison industry program - Maryland Correctional Enterprises (MCE) - have de-boned, cooked and packaged thousands of turkeys in preparation to feed the masses during the Annual Bea Gaddy Thanksgiving Day Dinner.

It's all done free of charge. Many of the inmate workers at MCE's Meat Plant hail from Baltimore City-some even from Bea Gaddy's neighborhood. Preparing a Thanksgiving feast is a special way to give back to the community.

Tyrone Arrington used to live not far from where it all takes place. He's been incarcerated for 14 years and at MCE for 2. "I'm from East Baltimore, so I know how it is for a lot of people that are less fortunate so if I can help out any way possible, I like to help out," Arrington said.

When the meals began in 1981, a winning lottery ticket helped Gaddy feed 49 of her neighbors. Bea passed away a number of years ago but the feast continues year after year thanks to volunteers. This year, 400 turkeys and numerous other food donations will be distributed to about 3,000 residents on site. Another 50,000 meals will be sent out into the community.

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ECI Inmates Rebuilding Century-Old Skipjack

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Michael Vlahovich, the man in charge who lovingly cares for the skip-jack and tends to the inmate crew, says the ECI men are fantastic. "They'd make a fantastic crew," Mr. Vlahovich told the Crisfield Times newspaper.

The ECI Annex has become locally famous on the Lower Shore for the work its pre-release and minimum-security inmates have done all across the region. From painting schools to helping Crisfield recover from the devastation of "Super Storm Sandy," this Public Safety Works (PSW) inmate crew has been phenomenal.

"It's about giving back and learning skills," says ECI Annex Administrator Darryl Webster, who was largely responsible for the PSW effort gaining traction on the Lower Shore after initial resistance.

The skip-jack, which was last refurbished 59 years ago, is an Eastern Shore treasure that will soon be brought back to life thanks in part to the efforts of four men who are incarcerated but paying society back in a meaningful way.

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