Ocean City stabbing incident: Massive fight in Boardwalk leaves three people injured

On Monday night, Ocean City authorities responded to a brawl on the Boardwalk which left 3 people injured with stab wounds.

According to the local police, a “serious” assault took place at 11:58 pm. 3 victims were found at the scene with stab wounds, before then being transported to separate hospitals.

2 of the victims were airlifted off the scene. The first was taken to Shock Trauma, while the second was flown to Christiana Hospital. The third victim was transported to Tidal Health Peninsula Regional Hospital via Boat.

The state of Maryland is no stranger to violence. According to Fox News, the altercation took place after the state's most dangerous city, Baltimore, had at least 15 people shot and five people dead over the violent weekend.

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Violence in Ocean City and Maryland as a whole

According to the Baltimore Sun, despite being a popular holiday destination, Ocean City has a reputation for violent crimes and brawls on the Boardwalk. While Ocean City is safer than Baltimore, which was reported by the FBI to be the second deadliest city in the nation, the tourist destination has its own share of problems. According to City Data, its crime rate is still 2.9 times the national average, with assault, theft and robbery being particular concerns for law enforcement.

According to Town spokesperson Jessica Waters, the Boardwalk typically sees a surge in crime and misdemeanours in June, during the holiday season.

Waters said:

“During June of 2020, our business community, visitors and residents were concerned that ordinances on the Boardwalk were not being obeyed. This included public drinking/open container, smoking and vaping, dog-walking as well as skateboarding and biking on the Boardwalk after hours."

Last year, after a particularly vicious spate of Boardwalk brawls, Ocean City Police increased their presence across the area. The viral videos of the fights gained so much traction that Maryland Governor Larry Hogan released a statement on Twitter acknowledging the situation.

Hogan wrote:

“The rash of violence we have seen in Ocean City in recent days is completely unacceptable. Maryland State Police will continue to support the Ocean City Police Department and deploy troopers for enhanced patrol assistance”

However, the decision to tighten police presence was not met with enthusiasm by all members of the community. While police did secure the boardwalk and decrease the number of fights, civil rights groups accused them of unfairly targeting young black teens.

This was in light of a 2021 incident in which local police were accused of brutalizing 5 black teens for vaping on the boardwalk.

During a news conference, NAACP Maryland State Conference President Willie Flowers said that the police must be held accountable, even if they claim their actions serve the community. In response to the videos, he alleged that it was clear the authorities were callous when it came to dealing with African-Americans.

He said:

“You have to come to the conclusion that people don’t care about Black African people. It’s an insult to anybody who has paid any ounce of taxes in Maryland”

NAACP members suggested that instead of police coming down harder on people, they should carry out community-based programs to uplift the disadvantaged neighborhoods in which crime primarily takes place.