On February 25, Associate Policy Director Sarah Sample testified before the Judiciary Committee in support of HB 186 – Police Discipline – Trial Board Composition with amendments.
This bill expands the pool of individuals who can act as the chair of a trial board for the review of a civilian complaint of police misconduct.
After almost five years of implementation following the passage of the Maryland Police Accountability Act, it is clear minor changes to procedures for various components would be a benefit to implementation. This bill looks to address one of those challenges that has been presented.
Current law requires the trial board chair to be an actively serving or retired administrative law judge or a retired judge of the district or circuit court. This is a requirement that has proved to be a staffing challenge in several jurisdictions, so the flexibility that HB 186 allows would be a welcome change. Counties believe this will help fill these positions faster and lead to greater public trust by providing a more efficient process.
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