OLO finds broad alignment but flags gaps in MCPDpolicy implementation of county use-of-force law

Aaron Trompka, the Office of Legislative Oversight analyst who authored OLO Report 2024-13, told the Montgomery County CouncilPublic Safety Committee on Oct. 14 that the county code and Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) policy generally align but that several textual differences warrant attention.

Trompka said OLO found "for the most part, a degree of consistency" between the code and policy but highlighted three substantive variations. "The duty to intervene standard does not appear in written policy" after a May revision removed the text, Trompka said, and the department intends to restore it in an upcoming policy revision. He also told the committee that the county code "unconditionally prohibits" neck or carotid restraints, while MCPD policy currently permits a form of neck restraint when deadly force would otherwise be authorized.

The differences, Trompka said, are important because they affect how officers are trained and how the public reads minimum statutory standards. "I pointed this out because clearly it is a mismatch from the, from what was in the text of the law and the legislative history," Trompka said.

MCPD officials defended their approach as an effort to make legal standards teachable and operational. Assistant Chief Darren Frank said the department believes it "has one of the most advanced, progressive, restrictive use-of-force policies in the entire country" and described planned revisions and training tied to the new policy. Frank said the department has not taught lateral vascular neck restraints in decades and that training emphasizes avoiding creating situations that increase risk to officers or civilians.

The OLO briefing also attributed a large increase in reported use-of-force incidents to definitional changes in MCPD reporting rules rather than to an evident jump in more intensive force. "While the number of incidents tripled from 2021 to '23, we have to recognize that the data are not comparable," Trompka said, noting that a 2022 change made pointing a weapon and even low-level physical efforts reportable. He added that "hands and pointing comprise 92% of the reported incidents" under the new reporting standard.

Trompka urged the council to examine the legislative history and asked policymakers to decide whether policy language should be revised to match the council's intent on items such as neck restraints. Several council members pressed for clearer, written explanations of how officers judge "reasonable and safe alternatives" and for the department to produce documentation that can be cited publicly and used in training.

Council members also raised racial-disparity data included in the OLO review. Trompka said OLO found "a pronounced racial disparity" in use-of-force incidents: "57% of the civilians involved in use-of-force incidents in 2023 were Black," a share that exceeds the county's Black population proportion. MCPD officials said the department lacks a definitive causal analysis and encouraged further data work; they also noted that officers involved in use-of-force incidents reflect the department's racial composition.

The committee asked for follow-up materials that MCPD and OLO agreed to provide, including clearer written guidance on how the department trains officers to apply "safe" and "reasonable" in split-second decisions, and additional data breakdowns to support longitudinal comparison. Trompka said OLO had isolated many issues in the written report and that a forthcoming MCPD policy revision should be the basis for more detailed alignment work.

The committee did not take formal action at the session; members requested additional documentation and suggested follow-up hearings once MCPD releases its revised policy.