New Dewey Beach police analysis shows major improvements within department

A recent organizational analysis shows the Dewey Beach Police Department has made major improvements to its internal and external operations since its last such review in 2019.

“The many changes that were observed are nothing short of amazing,” wrote the author, Capt. Gregory Warren, a retired Delaware State Police officer and managing member of American Law Enforcement Training and Consulting LLC.

The 26-page report, dated Dec. 13, 2025, was commissioned by the town. It was released six and a half years after Warren’s initial study, in which he found the DBPD was severely understaffed, poorly funded, inadequately housed, and plagued with low morale and infighting among its administration and town leadership.

Since then, the department has made many of the much-needed changes recommended by the 2019 study, including hiring more full-time emergency response and administrative personnel, hiring a new police chief, expanding its usage of special units, strengthening its relationships with town officials, adopting a formal computer-aided system for dispatching, improving its enforcement of pedestrian traffic laws, boosting employee morale, increasing starting salaries, offering better employment benefits, encouraging open interagency communication, and increasing community responsiveness and outreach.

Also, the town is in the midst of building a new facility to house its police department and town hall. The new structure will address the 2019 study’s concerns about lack of space and unsafe working conditions, and it will meet the state’s accreditation standards.

“The town has done an extraordinary job of changing the direction and trajectory of the police department in just a few short years,” Warren said. “This could not have been accomplished without a concerted effort on the part of many.”

He also provided some recommendations for moving forward, such as starting to level off spending and forming a sustainable, long-term baseline budget, spreading out internal responsibilities to avoid employee burnout, developing a comprehensive strategic plan with the town, and establishing an annual workplace climate survey of all personnel.

The complete analysis can be found at tinyurl.com/39mukdzb.

Warren was to present his findings to Dewey Beach officials during a town council meeting Jan. 16, at the town lifesaving station.

See the full agenda and virtual meeting link at townofdeweybeach.gov/meetings.