Vetoes of policing bills negated in Maryland
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland lawmakers voted Saturday to override Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s vetoes of three far-reaching measures that supporters say are needed to increase police accountability and restore public trust.
One of the measures repeals job protections in the police disciplinary process that critics say impede accountability. Maryland approved the nation’s first Law Enforcement Officers Bill of Rights in 1974, and about 20 states have adopted similar laws setting due process procedure for investigating police misconduct.
Maryland is the first to repeal its law, replacing it with procedures that give civilians a role in the police disciplinary process.
The Democratic-controlled General Assembly has been working on changes for months, after nationwide protests against racial injustice.
“Last year, I attended and participated in multiple demonstrations of people demanding change — the young and the old, people of all races and walks of life,” said Sen. Charles Sydnor, a Democrat who sponsored one of the measures. “With so many situations being thrust before our eyes, we could no longer deny what we see, and I thank my colleagues for believing their eyes and listening to the majority of Marylanders.”
Opponents said the measures went too far. The package includes provisions to increase the civil liability limit on lawsuits involving police from $400,000 to $890,000. An officer convicted of causing serious injury or death through excessive force would face 10 years in prison.
Sen. Robert Cassilly, a Republican, described the legislation as “anti-cop.”
“It allows for hindsight review of folks sitting in the easy chairs to judge people who made split-second decisions in volatile situations,” when an officer fears for his or her life and the lives of others, Cassilly said.
Hogan also vetoed legislation with a new statewide use-of-force policy and mandated use of body cameras statewide by July 2025.
Another measure expands public access to records in police disciplinary cases and limits the use of no-knock warrants. Police could use such warrants only between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m., except in an emergency.
Separately, the Legislature overrode Hogan’s veto of a bill that will ban sentences of life in prison without possibility of parole for juveniles.
Hogan had said the police measures would “further erode police morale, community relationships, and public confidence.”
“They will result in great damage to police recruitment and retention, posing significant risks to public safety throughout our state,” Hogan wrote.
But Sen. Jill Carter, a Baltimore Democrat, said erosion of public confidence occurs when nothing is done after residents file complaints against police, who are “then able to exact retaliation for the complaint with full knowledge that there’ll be no transparency, there’ll be no public disclosure, and there’ll be no repercussions.”
“It’s a critically important step in the right direction,” said Carter, who sponsored the bill to increase public access to police disciplinary records.
Hogan wrote that two measures would take effect without his signature.
One will create a unit in the attorney general’s office to investigate police-involved deaths and prohibit law enforcement from buying surplus military equipment. The other will enable Baltimore voters to decide whether the city should take full control of its Police Department from the state.