When a Maryland court sentences someone to home detention, the state Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services’ home detention unit is responsible for monitoring them. However, the unit is so short staffed, that the agency is eliminating the division’s night shift, which operates from midnight to 8 a.m.

The change is slated to take effect later this week, according to Rayneika Robinson, president of the local branch of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees that represents workers in that unit as well as in other parts of DPSCS.

Robinson said DPSCS plans to leave just a supervisor on the night shift.

“Let's say someone calls and says, ‘I need you to come remove this person.’ We're being told that the supervisor will then call and get permission to then call in a sergeant to come in and go do that removal,” Robinson described. “Every time you have to dial a number, you're taking up time.”

That delay could create a public safety risk, she said.

For example, one day last week, a person on home detention was asked to leave the house where he was staying at midnight, said Sgt. Oluwaseun Dada, who works in the Home Detention Unit.

“It really seems like this was a plan that was developed that didn't have much thought put into it, and when we ask questions, we don't get clear answers that are actually practicable,” Robinson said.

A spokesperson for DPSCS did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

According to state data, DPSCS had just over 1,000 vacant positions in October, for a vacancy rate of about 11%.

The state did not provide data specific to the Home Detention Unit. Dada said the unit is supposed to have 22 sergeants working in enforcement, but half of those positions are currently vacant.