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Council presses OECR for faster police-misconduct reviews; state law changes alter timelines
Summary
Council President Cohen and other members pressed the Office of Equity and Civil Rights on the time it takes to process police-misconduct investigations, and asked the office to produce a 1–2 page plan within four weeks to improve case-review efficiency. OECR pointed to recent state-law adjustments that change investigatory timelines.
Council leaders pressed the Office of Equity and Civil Rights on why police-misconduct case reviews have sometimes taken long to resolve and sought a written plan to accelerate processing.
"What are we doing? What is this office doing to address the disconnect around the time it takes to process cases? How are we expediting? How are we moving more quickly and getting it done?" Council President Cohen asked during the committee hearing.
Kalyn Young, deputy director of OECR, told the committee the office is "implementing and learning at the same time" and pointed to recent changes to state law intended to clarify and bifurcate timelines between police investigations and the Administrative Charging Committee’s (ACC) review. "In Annapolis, we passed senate bill 5 33 that goes into effect on October. What that requires is that the police department will have 334 days to complete their investigation," Young said, referring to the state-level change described in the hearing.
Under the timeline Young described, the police department will have 334 days (beginning Oct. 1) to complete its investigation; the ACC’s 30‑day review period begins when the ACC receives the complaint and may be extended by a 30‑day request, giving the ACC up to 60 days in those cases. OECR characterized the full statutory timeline under the adjusted law as roughly 13 months from start to finish, replacing the prior phrasing discussed at the hearing as "a year and a day."
Young and other OECR staff told the committee the office has increased staffing for police oversight in FY25 and is actively recruiting a permanent chief for the division; OECR also noted investments in case-management software and stipends for board members. Council President Cohen asked for a short report from OECR detailing state- and local-level improvements that could speed reviews. The president asked for that 1–2 page report to come from OECR within about four weeks, not from the police department.
Councilman Torrance recommended that OECR consider embedding staff inside the Baltimore Police Department’s investigations to receive evidence contemporaneously and reduce evidentiary delays; Kalyn Young acknowledged the recommendation and committee members discussed such operational options.
Ending: OECR agreed to the committee’s report request. The office said it will continue hiring and refining processes, and committee chairs signaled follow-up oversight in the public safety committee.
