Prince George's County Council on Oct. 28 authorized the council chair to send a letter to Maryland Governor Wes Moore and the secretaries of the Maryland Department of Health and Department of Human Services requesting expanded residential treatment capacity for children and adolescents within Prince George's County.

The council voted 9-0 to authorize the chair’s signature after a brief staff explanation and remarks from council members emphasizing the need for local options. Council member Charles Olson moved the authorization; Council members Blaguey and Watson were recorded as seconds. Chair Burrows cast the ayes that carried the motion unanimously.

The letter — described by council staff during the meeting — asks state leaders to support residential treatment facilities in the county so that young people with severe mental-health needs do not have to be sent out of county for care. A council member told the council the request followed “a horrible tragedy” in which a 16‑year‑old Prince Georgian with severe mental‑health issues died while placed outside the county; the meeting summary of the item said the letter frames expanded in‑county capacity as a necessary step to prevent similar outcomes.

Council staff flagged a clerical correction to the draft: the county executive’s name (Brayboy) had been included inadvertently and was to be removed so the letter would be signed by Chair Burrows alone. After that clarification, the council voted to authorize the signature.

The authorization is a formal correspondence step; it does not itself create county policy or appropriate new county funds. The letter asks that state agencies prioritize residential treatment options and coordination so that placements can be made closer to home.

The item was handled in the council’s correspondence and administrative officer’s report portion of the Oct. 28 agenda and drew no separate public hearing or public‑comment speakers.

With the vote complete, the council directed staff to finalize the letter for the chair’s signature and transmit it to the governor and the named state agencies.