Business Watch

What is it & how does it work?

A Business Watch is similar to a Neighborhood Watch; the concept is for citizens to take an active role in crime prevention — and to become partners with law enforcement. As a business owner or employee, you can serve as the eyes and ears for law enforcement by reporting suspicious people and activities you observe in and around your business.

Merchants regularly monitor suspicious people and activities through daily observations in their working environments. Who better to recognize a problem situation than someone who is familiar with the area? You and your employees are the best defense against potential crimes in your business — and can be helpful sources of information to police.

Communications Network

Email, Telephone & Fax

The Business Watch program encourages important information to be passed from merchants to police. It also encourages information sharing among businesses in a timely manner.

If a crime or suspicious incident occurs, the reporting business first calls 911 or the non-emergency line at 410-313-2200. Then, the business representative calls the Business Watch coordinator with the information. The coordinator then puts network outreach in motion, by e-mail, telephone or fax, to disseminate the pertinent information.

This procedure involves all member businesses and requires a minimum time commitment to achieve maximum results.

The network outreach also can be initiated by the police department’s community resource officer assigned to that community. Police can use the network to share crime and suspect information, as well as crime prevention tips.