MD
Maryland Senate Bill SB441

Maryland 2022 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB441 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
OldNewDifferences
11
22
33 EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
44 [Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
55 *sb0441*
66
77 SENATE BILL 441
88 E4 2lr1401
99 CF 2lr1242
1010 By: Senator Carter
1111 Introduced and read first time: January 26, 2022
1212 Assigned to: Judicial Proceedings
1313
1414 A BILL ENTITLED
1515
1616 AN ACT concerning 1
1717
1818 Baltimore City – Civilian Review Board 2
1919
2020 FOR the purpose of altering the powers and duties of the Baltimore City Civilian Review 3
2121 Board; authorizing the Baltimore City Civilian Review Board to function as a police 4
2222 accountability board; and generally relating to the Baltimore City Civilian Review 5
2323 Board. 6
2424
2525 BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 7
2626 The Public Local Laws of Baltimore City 8
2727 Section 16–42, 16–44, and 16–46 9
2828 Article 4 – Public Local Laws of Maryland 10
2929 (1979 Edition and 1997 Supplement and 2000 Supplement, as amended) 11
3030 (As enacted by Chapter 499 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2006) 12
3131
3232 BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 13
3333 The Public Local Laws of Baltimore City 14
3434 Section 16–43(f), 16–48, and 16–52 15
3535 Article 4 – Public Local Laws of Maryland 16
3636 (1979 Edition and 1997 Supplement and 2000 Supplement, as amended) 17
3737
3838 BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 18
3939 Article – Public Safety 19
4040 Section 3–102 20
4141 Annotated Code of Maryland 21
4242 (2018 Replacement Volume and 2021 Supplement) 22
4343 (As enacted by Chapter 59 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2021) 23
4444
4545 SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 24
4646 That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 25
4747
4848 Article 4 – Baltimore City 26 2 SENATE BILL 441
4949
5050
5151
5252 16–42. 1
5353
5454 (a) The Civilian Review Board of Baltimore City is established to provide a 2
5555 permanent, statutory agency in Baltimore City through which: 3
5656
5757 (1) complaints lodged by members of the public regarding [abusive 4
5858 language, false arrest, false imprisonment, harassment, or excessive force] MISCONDUCT 5
5959 by police officers of a law enforcement unit shall be processed, investigated under § 16–46 6
6060 of this subheading, and evaluated; and 7
6161
6262 (2) policies of a law enforcement unit may be reviewed. 8
6363
6464 (b) Jurisdiction of the Board shall extend [only to complaints against police 9
6565 officers with respect to abusive language, false arrest, false imprisonment, harassment, and 10
6666 use of excessive force as defined in § 16–41 of this subheading and by the law enforcement 11
6767 unit’s rules and regulations] TO ALL COMPLAINTS MADE BY ME MBERS OF THE PUBLIC 12
6868 REGARDING MISCONDUCT BY POLICE OFFICERS . 13
6969
7070 (C) THE BOARD MAY FUNCTION AS A POLICE ACCOUNTABIL ITY BOARD AS 14
7171 DESCRIBED IN § 3–102 OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ARTICLE OF THE ANNOTATED CODE 15
7272 OF MARYLAND. 16
7373
7474 [(c)] (D) A law enforcement unit shall place posters in all law enforcement unit 17
7575 stations and elsewhere throughout the City to explain the procedure for filing a complaint. 18
7676
7777 [(d)] (E) An explanation of the Board’s complaint procedures shall be made to all 19
7878 police officers in a general order to be included in the manual of rules and procedures of a 20
7979 law enforcement unit, and shall be included in the training program for new police officers. 21
8080
8181 [(e)] (F) Each member of the Board shall receive training on the issues of 22
8282 abusive language, false arrest, false imprisonment, harassment, and excessive force. 23
8383
8484 16–43. 24
8585
8686 (f) (1) (I) [The Mayor of Baltimore City shall assign staff to the Board for 25
8787 the periodic meetings of the Board from the Office of the City Solicitor and the Community 26
8888 Relations Commission] THE BOARD SHALL HIRE STAF F TO CARRY OUT ITS 27
8989 FUNCTIONS. 28
9090
9191 (II) AN EMPLOYEE OR A MEMB ER OF BALTIMORE CITY 29
9292 GOVERNMENT WHO IS NO T A MEMBER OF THE BOARD MAY NOT CONTROL A HIRING 30
9393 DECISION UNDER THIS PARAGRAPH . 31
9494
9595 (2) Baltimore City may hire an independent administrator to serve the 32 SENATE BILL 441 3
9696
9797
9898 Board. 1
9999
100100 16–44. 2
101101
102102 (a) An individual who claims to have been subjected to or witnessed an act of 3
103103 [abusive language, false arrest, false imprisonment, harassment, or excessive force, or 4
104104 injury allegedly resulting from excessive force caused by a police officer,] MISCONDUCT BY 5
105105 A POLICE OFFICER may file a complaint at the Office of the Internal Investigative 6
106106 Division, the Legal Aid Bureau, the Maryland Human Relations Commission, the 7
107107 Baltimore Community Relations Commission, or at any of the police district stations. 8
108108
109109 (b) [(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, a complaint shall 9
110110 be made within 1 year of the action giving rise to the complaint. 10
111111
112112 (2) A complaint for excessive force shall be made within 90 days of the 11
113113 alleged act of excessive force. 12
114114
115115 (c) (1) (i) The complaint shall be reduced to writing on a form authorized 13
116116 by the Board, signed by the complainant, and witnessed by a notary public. 14
117117
118118 (ii) In addition to the requirements of subparagraph (i) of this 15
119119 paragraph, a complaint for excessive force shall be sworn to by the complainant. 16
120120
121121 (2)] The complaint shall include: 17
122122
123123 [(i)] (1) the name of the complainant; 18
124124
125125 [(ii)] (2) if known, the name of the police officer allegedly involved; 19
126126
127127 [(iii)] (3) the date, time, and place of the alleged misconduct; 20
128128
129129 [(iv)] (4) the circumstances of the alleged misconduct; and 21
130130
131131 [(v)] (5) an explanation of the alleged misconduct that is deemed 22
132132 to be wrongful. 23
133133
134134 [(d)] (C) One copy of the completed form shall be retained by the recipient of the 24
135135 complaint and a copy given to the complainant. A copy shall be sent within 48 hours to the 25
136136 Internal Investigative Division and the Secretary of the Board. 26
137137
138138 [(e)] (D) The Secretary of the Board shall assign a consecutive number to each 27
139139 complaint, and within 48 hours, shall send a copy to each member of the Board. The 28
140140 Secretary shall also maintain on file a record of each complaint. 29
141141
142142 16–46. 30
143143 4 SENATE BILL 441
144144
145145
146146 (a) (1) The Board shall review all complaints alleging police misconduct 1
147147 described in § 16–42(a)(1) of this subheading. 2
148148
149149 (2) The Board may investigate, simultaneously with the Internal 3
150150 Investigative Division AND THE ADMINISTRATI VE CHARGING COMMITTE E 4
151151 ESTABLISHED UNDER § 3–104 OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ARTICLE OF THE 5
152152 ANNOTATED CODE OF MARYLAND, each complaint it deems appropriate and report its 6
153153 findings to the Internal Investigative Division AND ADMINISTRATIVE C HARGING 7
154154 COMMITTEE . 8
155155
156156 (b) (1) The Board may issue a subpoena, signed by the Chairman of the Board, 9
157157 to compel: 10
158158
159159 (i) the attendance and testimony of a witness other than the accused 11
160160 officer; and 12
161161
162162 (ii) the production of any book, record, or other document. 13
163163
164164 (2) If a person fails to comply with a subpoena issued under this subsection, 14
165165 on petition of the Board, a court of competent jurisdiction may compel compliance with the 15
166166 subpoena. 16
167167
168168 (3) A police officer may submit a witness list to the Board 10 days or more 17
169169 before the Board takes testimony. 18
170170
171171 (4) The Chairman or the Secretary of the Board may administer oaths in 19
172172 connection with any proceeding of the Board. 20
173173
174174 (5) The police officer or the police officer’s representative shall have the 21
175175 right to question witnesses who testify about the complaint. 22
176176
177177 (6) All witness testimony shall be recorded. 23
178178
179179 (c) (1) The Board shall review the Internal Investigative Division’s Report. 24
180180
181181 (2) On review of the Internal Investigative Division Report and the Board’s 25
182182 investigative report, if any, of each case, the Board shall recommend to the head of the 26
183183 appropriate law enforcement unit AND THE ADMINISTRATI VE CHARGING COMMITTE E 27
184184 one of the following actions: 28
185185
186186 (i) sustain the complaint and may recommend the appropriate 29
187187 disciplinary action against the police officer; 30
188188
189189 (ii) not sustain the complaint; 31
190190
191191 (iii) exonerate the police officer; 32 SENATE BILL 441 5
192192
193193
194194
195195 (iv) find that the complaint is unfounded; or 1
196196
197197 (v) require further investigation by the Internal Investigative 2
198198 Division. 3
199199
200200 (d) The Board shall submit a statement of its findings and recommendations to 4
201201 the head of the appropriate law enforcement unit AND THE ADMINISTRATI VE CHARGING 5
202202 COMMITTEE within 30 days of receipt of the Internal Investigative Division Report. 6
203203
204204 16–48. 7
205205
206206 [(a)] The [head of the appropriate law enforcement unit] ADMINISTRATIVE 8
207207 CHARGING COMMITTEE has final decision–making responsibility for the appropriate 9
208208 disciplinary action in each case, but the [head of the law enforcement unit ] 10
209209 ADMINISTRATIVE CHARG ING COMMITTEE may not take final action until after 11
210210 reviewing the recommendation of the Board under § 16–46(c)(2) of this subheading. 12
211211
212212 [(b) If a complaint is not sustained or the police officer is exonerated, on written 13
213213 request by the police officer sent to the Board, the Board shall expunge all records of the 14
214214 complaint.] 15
215215
216216 16–52. 16
217217
218218 (a) Records containing the names or identification of complainants, investigators, 17
219219 and witnesses may not be disclosed or released to the public. 18
220220
221221 (b) (1) The Internal Investigative Division shall retain sole custody of an 19
222222 Internal Investigative Division Report. 20
223223
224224 (2) Except for an Internal Investigative Division Report, the Board shall be 21
225225 the custodian of all records of a proceeding for a complaint under this subheading, including 22
226226 personal notes, audio recordings, memoranda, letters, and forms resulting from a complaint 23
227227 and proceedings before the Board involving the complaint. 24
228228
229229 (C) THE BOARD SHALL MAKE PUBL IC ANY RECORD NOT OT HERWISE 25
230230 PROHIBITED FROM DISC LOSURE UNDER STATE LAW. 26
231231
232232 Article – Public Safety 27
233233
234234 3–102. 28
235235
236236 (a) Each county shall have a police accountability board to: 29
237237
238238 (1) hold quarterly meetings with heads of law enforcement agencies and 30
239239 otherwise work with law enforcement agencies and the county government to improve 31 6 SENATE BILL 441
240240
241241
242242 matters of policing; 1
243243
244244 (2) appoint civilian members to charging committees and trial boards; 2
245245
246246 (3) receive complaints of police misconduct filed by members of the public; 3
247247 and 4
248248
249249 (4) (i) on a quarterly basis, review outcomes of disciplinary matters 5
250250 considered by charging committees; and 6
251251
252252 (ii) on or before December 31 each year, submit a report to the 7
253253 governing body of the county that: 8
254254
255255 1. identifies any trends in the disciplinary process of police 9
256256 officers in the county; and 10
257257
258258 2. makes recommendations on changes to policy that would 11
259259 improve police accountability in the county. 12
260260
261261 (b) (1) (i) Subject to subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, the local 13
262262 governing body shall: 14
263263
264264 1. establish the membership of a police accountability board; 15
265265
266266 2. establish the budget and staff for a police accountability 16
267267 board; 17
268268
269269 3. appoint a chair of the police accountability board who has 18
270270 relevant experience to the position; and 19
271271
272272 4. establish the procedures for record keeping by a police 20
273273 accountability board. 21
274274
275275 (ii) An active police officer may not be a member of a police 22
276276 accountability board. 23
277277
278278 (2) To the extent practicable, the membership of a police accountability 24
279279 board shall reflect the racial, gender, and cultural diversity of the county. 25
280280
281281 (c) (1) A complaint of police misconduct filed with a police accountability board 26
282282 shall include: 27
283283
284284 (i) the name of the police officer accused of misconduct; 28
285285
286286 (ii) a description of the facts on which the complaint is based; and 29
287287
288288 (iii) contact information of the complainant or a person filing on 30 SENATE BILL 441 7
289289
290290
291291 behalf of the complainant for investigative follow–up. 1
292292
293293 (2) A complaint need not be notarized. 2
294294
295295 (d) A complaint of police misconduct filed with a police accountability board shall 3
296296 be forwarded to the appropriate law enforcement agency within 3 days after receipt by the 4
297297 board. 5
298298
299299 (E) (1) THIS SUBSECTION APPLI ES IN BALTIMORE CITY. 6
300300
301301 (2) THE BALTIMORE CITY CIVILIAN REVIEW BOARD MAY FUNCTION 7
302302 AS THE POLICE ACCOUN TABILITY BOARD FOR BALTIMORE CITY. 8
303303
304304 (3) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY P ROVISION OF THIS SEC TION, THE 9
305305 PUBLIC LOCAL LAWS OF BALTIMORE CITY SHALL GOVERN THE POWERS AND 10
306306 DUTIES OF THE BALTIMORE CITY CIVILIAN REVIEW BOARD AND THE MEMBERS HIP 11
307307 OF THE BOARD SHALL BE DETERM INED IN ACCORDANCE W ITH § 16–43 OF THE 12
308308 PUBLIC LOCAL LAWS OF BALTIMORE CITY. 13
309309
310310 (4) THE BALTIMORE CITY CIVILIAN REVIEW BOARD MAY SUE AND BE 14
311311 SUED, AND MAY HIRE OR CONT RACT FOR LEGAL REPRE SENTATION. 15
312312
313313 (5) (I) THE ANNUAL BUDGET FOR BALTIMORE CITY SHALL 16
314314 INCLUDE AN APPROPRIA TION TO FUND THE BALTIMORE CITY CIVILIAN REVIEW 17
315315 BOARD THAT IS NOT LES S THAN 2% OF THE TOTAL BUDGET OF THE BALTIMORE 18
316316 CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT . 19
317317
318318 (II) THE BALTIMORE CITY CIVILIAN REVIEW BOARD MAY USE 20
319319 THE FUNDS DESCRIBED IN SUBPARAGRAPH (I) OF THIS PARAGRAPH FO R: 21
320320
321321 1. EMPLOYING STAFF AND INVESTIGATORS ; 22
322322
323323 2. HIRING OR CONTRACTIN G FOR LEGAL COUNSEL ; AND 23
324324
325325 3. ANY OTHER EXPENDITURE AP PROVED BY A QUORUM 24
326326 OF THE BALTIMORE CITY CIVILIAN REVIEW BOARD. 25
327327
328328 SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 26
329329 1, 2022, the effective date of Chapter 59 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2021. If the 27
330330 effective date of Chapter 59 is amended, this Act shall take effect on the taking effect of 28
331331 Chapter 59. 29
332332