In Maryland, police misconduct investigations are sometimes closed, and officers cleared, because of inadequate investigations. If access is limited to certain types of complaints, they may be misclassified, hiding troubling conduct that the public has a right to know about. Currently, Maryland’s Public Information Act has been interpreted to block the release of an officer’s misconduct complaints and disciplinary files.
But this can change.
SB178/HB120, Anton’s Law, would change the Maryland Public Information Act to allow the release of police misconduct complaint records to the public regardless of how a complaint is classified or how an investigation is concluded. Read our explainer on why Maryland must pass Anton’s Law and amend the Maryland Public Information Act.
