OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Calvert County Police Accountability Board Meeting - March 20, 2025

County Commissioners & Boards — Thursday, March 20, 2025
BodyCalvert County, Maryland
SessionCounty Commissioners & Boards
DateThursday, March 20, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 56:37

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

It is now 6 30.

0:02

Good evening.

0:03

I call the uh police accountability board meeting to order and let everyone know that this meeting is being recorded.

0:15

And the first item on our agenda is the approval of the of the agenda.

0:20

So do you have any additions or if not, I'll entertain a motion to approve the agenda.

0:27

Motion to approve the agenda.

0:28

It has been moved.

0:30

Do we have a second?

0:31

Has been moved and second to approve the agenda discussion.

0:35

All in favor say aye.

0:36

Aye.

0:37

Anyone opposed?

0:39

Okay.

0:40

Chair update since the last meeting.

0:44

As you know, since the last meeting, we had the annual report presented to the county commissioners.

0:52

And Susan was there.

0:56

And I think you would have the member there.

1:00

Ed was it?

1:01

Yeah, Ed from the ACC.

1:03

The chair of the ACC was also at that meeting.

1:06

And we received a favorable response from the commissioners, and they wanted to convey to the members uh the appreciation for the job that we're doing here in terms of what our mission is and purpose.

1:21

So the sheriff, the sheriff was there too.

1:25

So do you have any comments regarding that or that meeting?

1:30

The meeting for the when we presented the annual report.

1:34

Yes, sir.

1:35

Okay.

1:36

Very pleased.

1:36

Thank you.

1:37

Thank you.

1:39

That's all I have as the update.

1:42

I did inform the commissioners that I was not interested in the second term.

1:47

So they were nice.

1:52

I said we'll see.

1:53

Yeah, yeah.

1:58

Okay, the complaint report.

2:05

On the screen, you have the summary of the complaints that the police accountability board uh received during the year 2024.

2:18

You can see we received a total of uh 30 complaints, significantly down from the year before.

2:26

Uh 26 of those of the 30 complaints were reviewed by the ACC.

2:33

Uh two were not eligible for review, and that could be for reasons such as uh not within our jurisdiction, for instance, if there was a complaint about a state uh police, uh they have a different review board to go to.

2:52

Or if a complaint related to an IR an issue that we that uh occurred uh before July 1st of 2022, we would not address it.

3:03

So those are some reasons why you would have a number there.

3:07

The cases resulting in administrative uh charges, these are cases after review that we decided uh as the ACC to uh charge based on the uh disciplinary matrix we we have adopted here that's consistent throughout the state, and we have two cases uh pending review and the four cases that uh we reviewed uh for charging was in agreement with the findings that uh as a result of the investigation by the sheriff's office.

3:45

This is just another view of that uh data I just talked about, and it gives you a little more detail about the reasons why some of the cases may not have been reviewed by us.

4:00

Now, so far this year, since January first up until the 20th of February, uh we've received two cases so far, and those cases are pending review by the ACC, and it's just uh the same view drafted versus just the numbers.

4:30

Okay, I should have asked you if you had any update from the ACC.

4:36

Go ahead and okay.

4:39

All right, the next item.

4:41

Any discussion on the the numbers?

4:45

Okay, the next item on the agenda would is the recommendations that we were making uh to the uh sheriff's office, and these recommendations come about as a result of the cases that are reviewed by the ACC and actions taken by the H ACC or recommended actions uh or policies that need to be reviewed or developed uh by the sheriff's office.

5:00

And these recommendations come about as a result of the cases that are reviewed by the ACC and actions taken by the H ACC or recommended actions or policies that need to be reviewed or developed by the Sheriff's Office.

5:13

So the first recommendation is a periodic review of effective uh implementation of aid ADA training and procedures.

5:23

We do have those the procedures in place, and we're recommending just the periodic review uh as we interact with the public.

5:34

Discussion on that one.

5:38

Okay.

5:40

Then I'll entertain a motion.

5:41

Either you want to forward that to the sheriff's office for action or not.

5:47

I'll motion the forward moved forward.

5:50

Okay.

5:51

There's been a move a motion and a second to forward that recommendation to the sheriff's office.

5:57

Um discussion?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety█████████████████████████████████████████████53%
Procedural████████████14%
Legal Affairs███████████13%
Public Engagement█████6%
Community Engagement████5%
Education Policy███3%
Data Center Regulation██2%
Transportation Safety██2%
Personnel Matters██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Calvert County Police Accountability Board Meeting - March 20, 2025

The Calvert County Police Accountability Board (PAB) held its quarterly meeting on March 20, 2025, at 6:30 PM. The meeting covered approval of the agenda, updates from the chair and the Administrative Charging Committee (ACC), a 2024 complaint report, two recommendations forwarded to the Sheriff's Office, creation of a trending committee, a quarterly report from the Sheriff, remarks from the State's Attorney, and public comment. Key outcomes included unanimous approval of recommendations and formation of a committee to analyze complaint trends.

Agenda Approval

  • The board unanimously approved the agenda.

Chair Update

  • The chair reported that the annual report was presented to the County Commissioners, receiving a favorable response. The chair informed commissioners of his intent not to seek a second term.

Complaint Report (2024)

  • A total of 30 complaints were received in 2024, significantly down from the previous year.
  • Of those, 26 were reviewed by the ACC; 2 were not eligible for review (e.g., outside jurisdiction or prior to July 1, 2022).
  • Cases resulting in administrative charges were determined using the statewide disciplinary matrix. Two cases remain pending review.
  • Four cases reviewed for charging were in agreement with the Sheriff's Office investigation findings.
  • Since January 1, 2025, two cases have been received and are pending ACC review.

Recommendations to the Sheriff's Office

  • Recommendation 1: Periodic review of effective implementation of ADA training and procedures. The board voted unanimously to forward this to the Sheriff's Office.
  • Recommendation 2: Provide a process for complaints lodged by an officer about another officer's misconduct while dealing with the public. The board voted unanimously to forward this, with discussion noting it could also address internal performance issues and opens an additional avenue for complaints.

Trending Committee

  • A committee was formed to analyze complaint data for patterns and trends, going back to July 2022 (approximately 140 cases).
  • Volunteers: Wilson (chair), Susan, Lisa, Dawn, Quentin, and Benedict (joined virtually). The committee will present findings and potential recommendations at a future meeting.

Schedule for 2025

  • Next meetings: May 28, August 27, and December 3 (moved from Thanksgiving week) at 6:30 PM.

Sheriff's Quarterly Report (Q4 2024)

  • Sheriff presented highlights: 26,327 calls for service; 520 traffic accidents; DUI arrests increased during holiday season; drug overdoses down, attributed to Narcan use and reduced reporting.
  • Calvert County recorded the lowest crime rate in Maryland.
  • Efforts to address large neighborhood gatherings (commercial parties) through legislation and enforcement have reduced incidents.
  • The Sheriff's Office is pursuing CalEA accreditation and American Correctional Association policy review for the detention center, expected within a year.
  • School Resource Officers (SROs): Five of 12 elementary schools have full-time SROs; goal to have a deputy in every school by end of first term. Vaping is a major issue in schools; partnership with CASA to address addiction.
  • SRO complaints are handled through the PAB/ACC process; few have been received.
  • The Sheriff emphasized transparency, noting all case files, body camera footage, and emails are provided to the ACC.

State's Attorney Remarks

  • State's Attorney Bob Harvey expressed support for the PAB and ACC, noting a successful MOU and free flow of information.
  • He reviewed complaints for potential criminal charges; if charges are warranted, they are prosecuted; otherwise, declined.
  • Discussed a recent meeting with Superintendent Dr. Townshell to improve procedures for investigating criminal misconduct in schools, including accessing video evidence while complying with federal student privacy laws.

Public Comments

  • Nate (public): Asked about confidentiality agreements for board members and clarified that only the PAB's ACC representative has access to investigation information. The chair confirmed that board members without ACC access do not receive case details. Nate also inquired about different complaint forms (PAB complaint vs. citizen feedback form). The board clarified that formal complaints go to PAB; feedback forms are part of the investigation process and may be used in trending analysis.
  • Sophie (public): Questioned transparency: requested detailed public access to complaint descriptions, resolutions, and policy recommendations. The board explained that the online complaint tracker shows case status (e.g., exonerated, charged) but not narrative details; policy recommendations are discussed at meetings and will be more visible through the trending committee. Sophie also expressed dissatisfaction with how a previous public comment about Angel Jimenez was handled, urging more grace and direction for sensitive topics. The board acknowledged her comments but noted time limits.

Key Outcomes

  • Both recommendations (ADA training review and officer-to-officer complaint process) were unanimously approved and forwarded to the Sheriff's Office.
  • The trending committee was formed with five volunteers and will begin analyzing cases from July 2022, aiming to present findings at the August 2025 meeting.
  • The board adopted the 2025 meeting schedule.
  • A motion to adjourn was moved and seconded, and the meeting concluded.

Meeting Transcript

It is now 6 30. Good evening. I call the uh police accountability board meeting to order and let everyone know that this meeting is being recorded. And the first item on our agenda is the approval of the of the agenda. So do you have any additions or if not, I'll entertain a motion to approve the agenda. Motion to approve the agenda. It has been moved. Do we have a second? Has been moved and second to approve the agenda discussion. All in favor say aye. Aye. Anyone opposed? Okay. Chair update since the last meeting. As you know, since the last meeting, we had the annual report presented to the county commissioners. And Susan was there. And I think you would have the member there. Ed was it? Yeah, Ed from the ACC. The chair of the ACC was also at that meeting. And we received a favorable response from the commissioners, and they wanted to convey to the members uh the appreciation for the job that we're doing here in terms of what our mission is and purpose. So the sheriff, the sheriff was there too. So do you have any comments regarding that or that meeting? The meeting for the when we presented the annual report. Yes, sir. Okay. Very pleased. Thank you. Thank you. That's all I have as the update. I did inform the commissioners that I was not interested in the second term. So they were nice. I said we'll see. Yeah, yeah. Okay, the complaint report. On the screen, you have the summary of the complaints that the police accountability board uh received during the year 2024. You can see we received a total of uh 30 complaints, significantly down from the year before. Uh 26 of those of the 30 complaints were reviewed by the ACC. Uh two were not eligible for review, and that could be for reasons such as uh not within our jurisdiction, for instance, if there was a complaint about a state uh police, uh they have a different review board to go to. Or if a complaint related to an IR an issue that we that uh occurred uh before July 1st of 2022, we would not address it. So those are some reasons why you would have a number there. The cases resulting in administrative uh charges, these are cases after review that we decided uh as the ACC to uh charge based on the uh disciplinary matrix we we have adopted here that's consistent throughout the state, and we have two cases uh pending review and the four cases that uh we reviewed uh for charging was in agreement with the findings that uh as a result of the investigation by the sheriff's office. This is just another view of that uh data I just talked about, and it gives you a little more detail about the reasons why some of the cases may not have been reviewed by us. Now, so far this year, since January first up until the 20th of February, uh we've received two cases so far, and those cases are pending review by the ACC, and it's just uh the same view drafted versus just the numbers. Okay, I should have asked you if you had any update from the ACC. Go ahead and okay. All right, the next item. Any discussion on the the numbers? Okay, the next item on the agenda would is the recommendations that we were making uh to the uh sheriff's office, and these recommendations come about as a result of the cases that are reviewed by the ACC and actions taken by the H ACC or recommended actions uh or policies that need to be reviewed or developed uh by the sheriff's office. And these recommendations come about as a result of the cases that are reviewed by the ACC and actions taken by the H ACC or recommended actions or policies that need to be reviewed or developed by the Sheriff's Office.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com