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Bethany Beach police chief outlines CALEA review, use-of-force incidents, pursuits and seasonal training
Summary
Chief Patrick Fogle told the PAC the departmentcompleted a CALEA three-year review (2023'025), reported multiple documented uses of force (none involving shootings), summarized several pursuits (many called off by supervisors), and described expanded seasonal-officer training and a pay increase to $22/hour.
Chief Patrick Fogle delivered a detailed report to the PAC, summarizing a CALEA-focused three-year review covering 2023 through 2025 and outlining patterns in internal affairs, use-of-force incidents and vehicle pursuits.
Fogle told the committee that internal-affairs reviews for 2025 showed "nothing to report," while the 2023 and 2024 records included complaints classified under CALEA definitions (unfounded, sustained, not sustained, exonerated) and several sustained findings. He noted one 2023 matter involving a prior chief that remained pending in the judicial system in 2023 and was reported to CALEA.
On use-of-force, Fogle explained the department follows CALEA reporting guidance that counts displays or aims of a weapon as reportable incidents in addition to hands-on interventions. He reviewed incidents across the three-year span — including taser displays, firearms drawn during pursuits and a small number of hands-on leg-sweep arrests — and emphasized that "in the past 2 years nobody was shot." He described the documentation and after-action analysis used to identify trends and inform training.
Fogle summarized pursuit activity by year: one pursuit in 2023 (a July 4 multi-agency chase that Bethany supervisors called off for safety), multiple pursuits in 2024 (many discontinued by supervisors for time-of-day or traffic conditions), and several 2025 incidents that included one May DUI pursuit credited as the basis for an officer-of-the-year award. He said supervisors regularly weigh risk versus reward and will call pursuits off when conditions make them unsafe.
The chief also described the seasonal-officer program as a key staffing pipeline: most full-time officers began as seasonals, and this year the department raised seasonal pay from $20 to $22 an hour to improve recruitment. He said BethanyBeach's training exceeds the state POST minimum: the town requires roughly 206 hours of training supplemented by a four-week field-training officer (FTO) program rather than the state's 94-hour seasonal minimum.
Responding to committee questions, Fogle confirmed the department files an annual CALEA narrative that accompanies pursuit, use-of-force and internal-affairs data. He also said he can bring the departmentpursuit policy to a future meeting for review.
On the record, Fogle addressed a recent misinformation episode: Bethany hosted an Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response (ALERRT) training course at a church facility and, he said, a local person falsely claimed ICE was present and training in Bethany. "Absolutely false," Fogle said, adding that instructors and department staff confirmed the course was local law enforcement training and that the false reports sparked unnecessary calls and community concern.
The committee heard the report with follow-up questions about CALEA reporting and pursuit criteria; Fogle said the department will continue to use recorded incidents for training and keep the PAC informed. The PAC set no additional formal actions on the chief's report at the meeting.
