Democrat
1) What is your understanding of the racial disparities in Maryland’s criminal justice system? To the extent your office could make a difference, how would you address these disparities?
There is no question that systematic racial and ethnic inequalities exist throughout the criminal justice system but it is impossible to adequately address the disparities within the system without data driven analysis of criminal justice agencies including prosecution offices. To that end, in the Fall of 2020, I began to research how to best conduct a meaningful and comprehensive analysis of how cases are prosecuted once they are referred to the State’s Attorney’s Office and whether there are discrepancies in how cases are handled at different data points.
Through my research, I learned about Prosecutorial Performance Indicators’ (PPI), a partnership between Florida International University, Loyola University and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. PPI is a nationally recognized organization which has facilitated studies in numerous jurisdictions throughout the country. PPI is dedicated to the mission of using data driven analysis of prosecutor’s offices to evaluate fairness, equity, and office efficiency.
With the help of PPI and in coordination with researchers at the University of Maryland Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, we are in the process of analyzing past data in order better understand whether any racial disparities exist within the State’s Attorney’s Office. We have pledged to publish the results of the study upon its completion. Additionally, we are working with PPI to create a forward-facing dashboard so that we can have more transparency between our office and the community we serve.
2) Would you support a statewide survey of all Md. State’s Attorneys’ offices to identify any racial / ethnic fairness disparities in charging and plea-bargain policies?
Yes. As stated above, our office has already begun working with researchers from the University of Maryland Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice in order to analyze data regarding how cases are handled at critical decision-making points in our office.
Unlike many states, criminal cases prosecuted by this office are almost universally investigated and charged by the police before referral to the State’s Attorney’s Office. While prosecutors do not control which cases are charged by the police, we have a responsibility to analyze how criminal cases are handled after they have been charged by police in order to ensure that cases are handled equitably across racial and ethnic lines.
3) In your opinion, is there a difference between being “tough on crime” and “smart on crime”? Please give examples of what you might do in office in this regard.
There is a difference between being “tough on crime” and being “smart on crime”. As State’s Attorney, my goal is to promote public safety in our community. That goal cannot be obtained through a simple “tough on crime” approach. That is why Montgomery County offers a myriad of diversion programs to include Alternative Community Service (ACS), the Intervention and Prevention of Substance Abuse (IPSA), Drug Court, and Mental Health Court.
In the District Court, since 2016, well over 10,000 misdemeanor cases have been diverted into the ACS or IPSA programs. Once a defendant completes community service through ACS or a drug education program through IPSA, their criminal cases are dismissed. In cases where defendants suffer from drug addiction or mental health problems, our Drug Court and Mental Health Courts allow those who qualify to receive treatment as opposed to incarceration. Acceptance into any diversionary program does not depend on the defendant’s ability to pay for diversion into the programs.
In addition to offering diversionary programs, I believe part of my job as State’s Attorney is that of educator-in-chief. The best way to lower crime is to educate members of our community on how not to become a victim. Under my leadership, the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office has partnered with numerous agencies to institute educational programs.
Several years ago, I worked with Montgomery County Public Schools and the Montgomery County Police Department to add cyber safety education to the school curriculum. The cyber safety presentations educate students on cyber bullying, privacy protection and potential long-term consequences of online behavior. Since 2016, we have given over 300 presentations and have reached over 14,000 students and over 1000 parents.
I worked with other partnership agencies to including the Montgomery County Bar Association of which I was the former president, Johns Hopkins, the Maryland Board of Nursing and the National Institute of Justice to create educational outreach programs for seniors. I have personally given over 300 presentations over the years at senior groups including but not limited to Oasis, Johns Hopkins, Brandeis and Leasure World. The presentations educate seniors on financial abuse and exploitation, elder physical and sexual abuse and elder neglect and cybercrimes.
The State’s Attorney’s Office works in partnership with the Domestic Violence Coordinating Council, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Chesapeake Counseling and the Jewish Coalition against Domestic Violence on the Choose Respect Initiative. This initiative focuses on educating teens on healthy dating relationships and teen dating violence awareness. Since 2015, we have presented over 500 times and we have been able to reach over 15,000 students.
As State’s Attorney, I believe it is critical to watch for potential trends in criminal activity occurring in Montgomery County. Years ago, Montgomery County saw a marked increase in deaths due to opioid overdose which mirrored the national trend referred to as the “opioid epidemic”. In 2018, there were 2,406 opioid related deaths in Maryland (a 5% increase from 2017).
In response to the staggering growing numbers of opioid related deaths, I initiated the “Speak Up, Save a Life” program in the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office and successfully reached out to the Montgomery County Police, the Montgomery County Bar Association and the Maryland State Bar Association to join us as partners in this project. The mission of the Speak Up, Save a Life program is to educate students, families and the community about the opioid epidemic and Maryland’s Good Samaritan Law. We have successfully reached over 70,000 members of our community through the Speak Up, Save a Life program.
4) Does Maryland need to expand access to criminal records’ expungement for formerly incarcerated citizens who successfully complete their terms and remain law-abiding? Are the current statutes effective to ensure public safety and provide equitable access to employment?
Expungement statutes are enacted by the legislature and any changes to those laws would have to be made by proposed legislation. If the law changes in relation to possession of marijuana, I believe that expungement laws should be expanded to allow for expungement of charges relating to possession of marijuana.
While the State’s Attorney’s Office does not have the power to change the expungement laws, we can help to make the expungement process more easily accessible to individuals who qualify for that relief. Unfortunately, expungement statutes can be confusing and difficult to navigate. Many individuals are unaware of their ability to have their cases expunged or do not know how to begin the expungement process. That is why I began to hold expungement clinics throughout the County. During those clinics, myself and other members of the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office explain the expungement process and answer questions so that eligible individuals can successfully clear their criminal records.
5) Do you support reform of our juvenile justice system (4 parts) to: a) seek less incarceration for lower level offenses and more diversion to treatment? b) prevent police from lying to juveniles to induce confessions? c) create a presumption of restorative justice remedies or school discipline for non-felony offenses occurring on school grounds? d) support treatment of juveniles who have been sex-trafficked as victims, not offenders?
In order to adequately respond to questions regarding juvenile justice, it is important to explain how juvenile cases come into the State’s Attorney’s Office. Most low-level juvenile cases are never criminally charged. Instead, they are diverted through the Montgomery County Public School Restorative Justice Program.
For the past several years, I have been working with the Montgomery County Public Schools on the implementation of restorative justice programs in our schools. As a result of our development and implementation of the restorative justice program in Montgomery County Public Schools, in the last pre-COVID year, 1,806 cases were successfully diverted away from traditional criminal justice into the restorative justice program. The program continues to thrive and is being expanded throughout the County.
More serious juvenile cases are screened by a Program Specialist who is a civilian employee within the Montgomery County Police Special Victims Investigation Division. The program specialist diverts a substantial number of cases. The remaining cases are sent to the Department of Juvenile Justice (an agency outside of the State’s Attorney’s Office) and the majority of those cases are informally adjudicated at intake. In fact, only 40% of charged juvenile cases are forwarded from DJS to the State’s Attorney’s Office. The cases which are referred to the State’s Attorney’s Office are referred because they are more serious offences and are in many cases perpetrated by juvenile respondents who have had prior contacts with the juvenile justice system. In Montgomery County, low level juvenile cases are diverted in a number of ways and those cases are not prosecuted. Regarding juvenile interrogations, a number of states have enacted legislation prohibiting police from using deception in interviews with juveniles.
While Maryland has no such law, there is new legislation which has effectively made the question raised in (b) moot. Under the new legislation, the police may not interrogate a juvenile until that juvenile has consulted with an attorney. That right cannot be waived by a juvenile. An attorney will have the opportunity to explain all rights afforded to that juvenile and will be able to advise the juvenile as to whether and how they should speak to police. Finally, we currently have a policy in place ensuring that we do not prosecute prostitution. In fact, we work closely with Montgomery County Police to investigate human trafficking rings where victims are brought into the County to work in “massage parlors”. We prosecute the pimps and madams who take advantage of victims (many of whom are not citizens and do not speak English) who are forced to live and work in disturbing conditions.
In addition, for the past year, the State’s Attorney’s Office has been working with the Domestic Violence Coordinating Counsel on centralizing services for victims of power-based violence. The committee with stakeholders and leaders from the State’s Attorney’s Office, APS, Human Trafficking Task Force, CPS, MCPD, FJC, HHS Trauma Services, Shady Grove, county council, and county executive’s office has been collaborating on the provision of services and are taking a multi-disciplinary approach to try to help victims of human trafficking and other forms of power-based violence.
6) In conclusion, what else would you like to tell voters about your criminal justice plans?
As State’s Attorney, I believe it is critical to watch for potential trends in criminal activity occurring in Montgomery County and to combat any issues which affect our community through innovative programs and policies. Throughout my tenure as State’s Attorney, there are countless examples of programs I have created or policies I have enacted in response to the needs of the community we serve.
In 2015, President Barack Obama created the Blue Ribbon “Task Force on 21st Century Policing”. The task force issued a report in May of 2015 recommending a number of policy changes be enacted within the area of law enforcement.
One recommendation was that cases involving police use of force resulting in death should be reviewed by independent prosecutors. Consistent with that recommendation, the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, in coordination with the Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office, became the first in the State to mandate that all cases involving police use of force resulting in death, officer involved shootings resulting in death and any in-custody deaths must be reviewed by an independent prosecutor from a different jurisdiction.
Years ago, Montgomery County saw a marked increase in deaths due to opioid overdose which mirrored the national trend referred to as the “opioid epidemic”. In response to that crisis, I initiated the “Speak Up, Save a Life” program in the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office and successfully reached out to the Montgomery County Police, the Montgomery County Bar Association and the Maryland State Bar Association to join us as partners in this project. The mission of the “Speak Up, Save a Life” program is to educate students, families and the community about the opioid epidemic and Maryland’s Good Samaritan Law. We have successfully reached over 70,000 members of our community through the Speak Up, Save a Life program.
Recently, throughout the Nation, there has been a significant increase in gun violence and violent crime, especially among our youth. Several factors have contributed to the surge in violent crime to include the increase in online sales of “ghost guns”. In response to the increase of guns and gun violence in our community and our schools, I worked with the Montgomery County police to create a gun taskforce which will focus on identifying and prosecuting individuals who are illegally buying and selling guns in Montgomery County. As long as I am State’s Attorney, I am committed to adapting to the needs of the community I serve
