OCPD 2024 Officer of the Year Arrested for DUI, Reckless Driving
SNOW HILL, Md. – According to court documents obtained by WMDT, an Ocean City police officer is facing charges including driving under the influence and reckless driving.
Court documents filed on Feb. 9 show that 28-year-old Benjamin Ethan Panitch of Ocean City was arrested by Maryland State Police in Snow Hill following an incident at 2:52 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 8. Panitch is employed with the Ocean City Police Department and was selected as the 2024 Officer of the Year for the department.
Panitch is charged with the following:
- Driving a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol
- Driving vehicle while impaired by alcohol
- Reckless driving vehicle in wanton and willful disregard for safety of persons and property
- Negligent driving vehicle in careless and imprudent manner endangering property, life and person ($350 fine)
- Driver failure to obey properly placed traffic control device instructions ($90 fine)
- Failure to drive vehicle on right half of roadway when required ($90 fine)
- Driving wrong way on one way street ($90 fine)
The first three charges require Panitch to have a mandated court appearance. A petition for an appointment of a special prosecutor was sent on Tuesday, Feb. 10. Officials have confirmed that the Caroline County State Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case.
“The Ocean City Police Department Office of Professional Standards has been notified and will conduct an internal investigation,” OCPD said in a statement to WMDT.
WMDT reached out to Maryland State Police, the Snow Hill State Attorney’s Office, and the Caroline County State Attorney’s Office for comment. All three declined to comment at this time.
