The Maryland General Assembly on Thursday approved a measure to give the state’s attorney general independent authority to file criminal charges against police officers after investigating deaths involving officers.
The Maryland House voted 99 to 37 in favor of legislation already passed by the Senate and sent it to Gov. Wes Moore, who said he would sign the law into law.
The legislation expands a package of police reforms passed two years ago in response to concerns about police accountability following the 2020 killing of George Floyd in Minnesota.
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The Independent Investigations Unit was set up in the Attorney General’s Office to investigate the deaths of civilians when the police are involved. Current law empowers the department to investigate the cases and provide facts to local prosecutors, who then decide whether to prosecute.
Supporters of the new bill say it aims to end potential conflicts of interest between local prosecutors and police. Opponents say it is an overstatement of state powers over locally elected prosecutors.
State Del. Luke Clippinger speaks during a debate April 6, 2023 in Annapolis, Maryland regarding legislation giving the Attorney General the power to bring certain criminal charges against police officers. (AP Photo/Brian Witte)
Del. Jason Buckel, an Allegany County Republican, noted that 23 out of 24 prosecutors from both political parties in Maryland oppose the bill. He tried to change the measure so that local prosecutors would have 60 days after completing a report from the attorney general’s office to decide to press charges. If local prosecutors decided against it, the attorney general could still bring charges against an officer.
“It simply means that we should follow the processes we have followed and we should trust our own elected local leaders to make their judgment first and give them 60 days to learn whether charges are viable or not and if so, what charges should be filed and not allow the Attorney General’s office to be the sole arbiter of that decision,” said Buckel, who is the House Minority Leader.
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But del. Luke Clippinger, a Baltimore Democrat who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, said the change would create a two-tier system that would mess up the process. He said the bill takes the next step in ensuring investigations are independent.
“Even if there was a shred of doubt that there might be some sort of bias or bias in the local DA’s office, that’s off the table,” Clippinger said.
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The House of Representatives rejected the amendment.
The independent division was established on October 1, 2021. So far, she has investigated 31 civilian deaths involving the police. Local prosecutors have decided not to press charges in 17 of those cases, while the others remain open.
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