Report Includes Statistics from the Division’s 23 Cases, Legal Updates
BALTIMORE, MD (November 29, 2022)– Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh today announced the first annual reportof the Independent Investigations Division’s (IID), the new office created by last year’s police reform legislation to investigate all police-involved fatalities in the state of Maryland. In a significant shift from prior practices, in which local officers would investigate other officers within their department, the IID exists separate and apart from any local law enforcement agency.
The report covers the IID’s work from October 1, 2021, through September 30, 2022, its first 12 months in existence. The annual report includes statistics from the first 23 cases, legal updates, and an overall look at the Division’s investigative process.
The IID was created by the General Assembly in the spring of 2021 to “investigate all alleged or potential police-involved deaths of civilians” throughout the State. The IID was granted jurisdiction over incidents that occurred beginning October 1, 2021.
At the conclusion of each independent investigation, the IID is charged with preparing a report and transmitting it to the local State’s Attorney of the county, or Baltimore City, that has jurisdiction to prosecute the matter. The report submitted to the local prosecutor contains detailed investigative findings and an analysis of relevant legal issues. The local prosecutor, not the IID, makes the decision of whether a case should be criminally charged and handles any subsequent prosecution.
“The IID’s first annual report contains detailed information on the circumstances and nature of police-involved fatalities in Maryland, and what my office is doing to investigate them fairly and with transparency,” said Attorney General Frosh.
More information on the IID investigations can be found here.
BALTIMORE, MD (November 29, 2022)– Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh today announced the first annual reportof the Independent Investigations Division’s (IID), the new office created by last year’s police reform legislation to investigate all police-involved fatalities in the state of Maryland. In a significant shift from prior practices, in which local officers would investigate other officers within their department, the IID exists separate and apart from any local law enforcement agency.
The report covers the IID’s work from October 1, 2021, through September 30, 2022, its first 12 months in existence. The annual report includes statistics from the first 23 cases, legal updates, and an overall look at the Division’s investigative process.
The IID was created by the General Assembly in the spring of 2021 to “investigate all alleged or potential police-involved deaths of civilians” throughout the State. The IID was granted jurisdiction over incidents that occurred beginning October 1, 2021.
At the conclusion of each independent investigation, the IID is charged with preparing a report and transmitting it to the local State’s Attorney of the county, or Baltimore City, that has jurisdiction to prosecute the matter. The report submitted to the local prosecutor contains detailed investigative findings and an analysis of relevant legal issues. The local prosecutor, not the IID, makes the decision of whether a case should be criminally charged and handles any subsequent prosecution.
“The IID’s first annual report contains detailed information on the circumstances and nature of police-involved fatalities in Maryland, and what my office is doing to investigate them fairly and with transparency,” said Attorney General Frosh.
More information on the IID investigations can be found here.