Committee hears bill to bridge civilian–military gap for military protective orders

Senate Bill 273, presented to the Judicial Proceedings Committee on Jan. 30, 2025, would let Maryland judges consider a military protective order (MPO) when deciding whether to issue a civilian temporary peace order or protective order and would require Maryland law enforcement to notify military authorities if they have probable cause to believe a service member violated an MPO. Senator Brooks requested a favorable report on the bill.

Proponents told the committee the bill closes two gaps: MPOs are enforceable only on installations, and civilian judges and police cannot currently treat MPOs like comparable civilian orders. Joyce King of the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office described incidents where victims with MPOs off post received no effective protection, saying local officers did not have a mechanism to act or notify the base when the member violated the MPO.

Lisa Jordan of the Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Christopher Arnold of the Department of Defense’s Mid-Atlantic liaison office said the measure improves coordination and victim safety. Arnold told the committee the bill would “close the dangerous jurisdictional gaps that abusers exploit” and called it a “common-sense measure.”

Committee members asked about whether judges might defer to an MPO instead of issuing a civilian order; witnesses said the bill explicitly would not require judges to issue a civilian order and that education about MPO limits would help judges understand why a civilian order can still be necessary. The bill does not create a duty to enforce MPOs by civilian police; it requires notification when police have probable cause of a violation.

With no recorded vote in the hearing, proponents asked the committee for a favorable report. The measure remained at the hearing stage at the close of testimony.