Give Police Accountability Boards Independent Power
Act Now
Maryland legislators must pass a bill to clarify that local governing bodies have the power to empower their Police Accountability Boards (PABs) to issue subpoenas, interview witnesses, employ all other investigative techniques necessary to draw accurate conclusions about incidents, and to investigate claims.
The Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021 required local jurisdictions to create PABs, with the intention of providing independent, more community-controlled oversight into police misconduct. Police investigations and subsequent discipline are routinely inadequate in Maryland. Report after report in different counties show how police routinely fail to adequately respond to internal and external complaints of racial harassment, discrimination, and misuse of force. Most complaints, even for serious misconduct allegations, are deemed "not sustained," which means they don’t move forward. This is unacceptable.
Join the Maryland Coalition for Justice and Police Accountability and contact members of the House Judiciary and Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee to vote "Yes" on SB 285.
Message Recipients:
House Judiciary and Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee Members