The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - SWAT Team oversight. A good start. A good idea. Lets hope it goes nationwide

Dust Monkey · June 6, 2009, 11:55 PM

This is what I, and many who think SWAT teams have been overused, has been waiting for. While I do not think it goes far enough, it does not punish agencies or individuals, it is a start to some sort of oversight other than the agencies policing themselves. I would like something like this to be public record for all to see. And I would love for it to go nationwide. I have already sent a copy to my state reps.

Law Enforcement: Maryland Bill Would Require SWAT Team Monitoring
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from Drug War Chronicle, Issue #573, 2/20/09
Last July, police in Prince Georges County, Maryland, made national news headlines when their SWAT team raided the home of Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo. Police had tracked a box containing marijuana to Calvo's porch, and when he carried the box inside upon returning home, the SWAT team struck. Team members broke down the door, restrained Calvo and his mother-in-law for hours, and shot and killed Calvo's two Labrador retrievers, one while running away.

http://http://stopthedrugwar.org/chr...WAT_bill?print

PolitickerMD cartoon about the Berwyn Heights raidIt would have been just another SWAT raid, except for two things: Calvo and his wife are well-liked public figures, and Calvo was an innocent victim. The real culprits in the case artfully protected their marijuana shipments by having them delivered to unknowing people, in this case the mayor of Berwyn Heights.

Now, in the wake of the Calvo incident, as well as other well-known SWAT raids gone bad, such as the one last year in which a 26-year-old Lima, Ohio, woman was killed and the one a few months later in which a Pennsylvania FBI agent was shot dead by a homeowner who claimed she thought she was defending her family from intruders, a handful of Maryland legislators are trying to rein in the SWAT teams.

A bill filed earlier this month, SB 447, would require police departments to monitor their SWAT team use and report it annually to the governor and the General Assembly. As the bill puts it:

"On a monthly basis, beginning January 1, 2010, a law enforcement agency that maintains a SWAT team shall report the following information to the office of the attorney general using the format developed under subsection (c) of this section:

(1) the number of times the SWAT team was activated and deployed by the law enforcement agency in the previous month;

(2) without identifying an exact address, the approximate location within or outside of the jurisdiction of the law enforcement agency to which the SWAT team was deployed for each activation;

(3) the reason for each activation and deployment of the SWAT team;

(4) the legal authority, including type of warrant, if any, for each activation and deployment of the SWAT team; and

(5) the result of each activation and deployment of the SWAT team, including:

(i) the number of arrests made, if any;
(ii) the type of evidence seized, if any;
(iii) whether a forcible entry was made;
(iv) whether a weapon was discharged by a SWAT team member; and
(v) whether a person or domestic animal was injured or killed by a SWAT team member."

"This bill is an important first step that doesn't restrict [SWAT] use," Calvo told the DC Examiner. "It merely brings transparency."

And that would be a much needed beginning to reining in the SWAT teams, which were originally intended for hostage situations and other high-risk affairs, but have ended up being used routinely in drug raids and other law enforcement endeavors. If the bill passes, Maryland would be the first state in the nation to demand accountability from its law enforcement agencies when it comes to SWAT teams.

http://http://mlis.state.md.us/2009r...sb/sb0447f.pdf

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*sb0447*
SENATE BILL 447
E4 9lr1314
CF 9lr2326
By: Senators Muse, Frosh, Haines, Mooney, Peters, Raskin, and Stone
Introduced and read first time: February 4, 2009
Assigned to: Judicial Proceedings
A BILL ENTITLED
AN ACT concerning
Public Safety – SWAT Team Activation and Deployment – Reports
FOR the purpose of requiring, at certain intervals beginning on a certain date, a law enforcement agency that maintains a SWAT team to report certain information to the Office of the Attorney General using a certain format; requiring the Police Training Commission, in consultation with the Office, to develop a standardized format that certain law enforcement agencies shall use in reporting certain data relating to the activation and deployment of certain SWAT teams to the Office and to certain local officials; requiring a law enforcement agency to compile certain information as a report in a certain format and to submit the report to the Office no later than a certain date following the period that is the subject of the report; requiring the Office to analyze and summarize certain reports of law enforcement agencies and to submit a report of the analyses and summaries to the Governor, the General Assembly, and each law enforcement agency before a certain date of each year; providing that, if a law enforcement agency fails to comply with the reporting provisions of this Act, the Office shall report the noncompliance to the Police Training Commission; providing that the Commission shall contact a certain law enforcement agency and request that the agency comply with this Act under certain circumstances; providing that, if a certain law enforcement agency fails to comply with certain reporting provisions within a certain period after being contacted by the Commission, the Office of the Attorney General and the Commission jointly shall make a certain report to the Governor and the Legislative Policy Committee of the General Assembly; defining certain terms; and generally relating to the activation and deployment of SWAT teams.

BY adding to
Article – Public Safety
Section 3–507
Annotated Code of Maryland
(2003 Volume and 2008 Supplement)

2 SENATE BILL 447
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF
MARYLAND, That the Laws of Maryland read as follows:
Article – Public Safety
3–507.

(A) (1) IN THIS SECTION THE FOLLOWING WORDS HAVE THE
MEANINGS INDICATED.

(2) “LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY” MEANS AN AGENCY THAT IS
LISTED IN § 3–101(E) OF THIS TITLE.

(3) “LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER” MEANS ANY PERSON WHO, IN
AN OFFICIAL CAPACITY, IS AUTHORIZED BY LAW TO MAKE ARRESTS AND WHO IS
AN EMPLOYEE OF A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT IS SUBJECT TO THIS
SECTION.

(4) “POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION” MEANS THE UNIT WITHIN
THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
ESTABLISHED UNDER § 3–202 OF THIS TITLE.

(5) “SWAT TEAM” MEANS A SPECIAL UNIT COMPOSED OF TWO OR
MORE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WITHIN A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
TRAINED TO DEAL WITH UNUSUALLY DANGEROUS OR VIOLENT SITUATIONS AND
HAVING SPECIAL EQUIPMENT AND WEAPONS, SUCH AS RIFLES MORE POWERFUL
THAN THOSE CARRIED BY REGULAR POLICE OFFICERS.

(B) ON A MONTHLY BASIS, BEGINNING JANUARY 1, 2010, A LAW
ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT MAINTAINS A SWAT TEAM SHALL REPORT THE
FOLLOWING INFORMATION TO THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL USING
THE FORMAT DEVELOPED UNDER SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION:

(1) THE NUMBER OF TIMES THE SWAT TEAM WAS ACTIVATED
AND DEPLOYED BY THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY IN THE PREVIOUS MONTH;

(2) WITHOUT IDENTIFYING AN EXACT ADDRESS, THE
APPROXIMATE LOCATION WITHIN OR OUTSIDE OF THE JURISDICTION OF THE
LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY TO WHICH THE SWAT TEAM WAS DEPLOYED FOR
EACH ACTIVATION;

(3) THE REASON FOR EACH ACTIVATION AND DEPLOYMENT OF
THE SWAT TEAM;

SENATE BILL 447 3

(4) THE LEGAL AUTHORITY, INCLUDING TYPE OF WARRANT, IF
ANY, FOR EACH ACTIVATION AND DEPLOYMENT OF THE SWAT TEAM; AND

(5) THE RESULT OF EACH ACTIVATION AND DEPLOYMENT OF THE
SWAT TEAM, INCLUDING:

(I) THE NUMBER OF ARRESTS MADE, IF ANY;

(II) THE TYPE OF EVIDENCE SEIZED, IF ANY;

(III) WHETHER A FORCIBLE ENTRY WAS MADE;

(IV) WHETHER A WEAPON WAS DISCHARGED BY A SWAT
TEAM MEMBER; AND

(V) WHETHER A PERSON OR DOMESTIC ANIMAL WAS
INJURED OR KILLED BY A SWAT TEAM MEMBER.

(C) THE POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION, IN CONSULTATION WITH THE
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, SHALL DEVELOP A STANDARDIZED
FORMAT THAT EACH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY SHALL USE IN REPORTING
DATA TO THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL UNDER SUBSECTION (B) OF
THIS SECTION.

(D) A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY SHALL:

(1) COMPILE THE DATA DESCRIBED IN SUBSECTION (B) OF THIS
SECTION FOR EACH MONTH AS A REPORT IN THE FORMAT REQUIRED UNDER
SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION; AND

(2) NO LATER THAN THE 15TH DAY OF THE MONTH FOLLOWING
THE MONTH THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT, SUBMIT THE REPORT TO:
(
I) THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL; AND

(II) 1. THE LOCAL GOVERNING BODY OF THE
JURISDICTION SERVED BY THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT EMPLOYS
THE SWAT TEAM THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT; OR

2. IF THE JURISDICTION SERVED BY THE LAW
ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT EMPLOYS THE SWAT TEAM THAT IS THE
SUBJECT OF THE REPORT IS A MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, THE CHIEF
EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE JURISDICTION.

4 SENATE BILL 447
(E) (1) THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL SHALL ANALYZE
AND SUMMARIZE THE MONTHLY REPORTS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES
SUBMITTED UNDER SUBSECTION (D) OF THIS SECTION.

(2) THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL SHALL SUBMIT A
REPORT OF THE ANALYSES AND SUMMARIES OF THE REPORTS OF LAW
ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES DESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (1) OF THIS SUBSECTION
TO THE GOVERNOR, THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AS PROVIDED IN § 2–1246 OF
THE STATE GOVERNMENT ARTICLE, AND EACH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
BEFORE SEPTEMBER 1 OF EACH YEAR.

(F) (1) IF A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY FAILS TO COMPLY WITH THE
REPORTING PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION, THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY
GENERAL SHALL REPORT THE NONCOMPLIANCE TO THE POLICE TRAINING
COMMISSION.

(2) ON RECEIPT OF A REPORT OF NONCOMPLIANCE, THE POLICE
TRAINING COMMISSION SHALL CONTACT THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY AND
REQUEST THAT THE AGENCY COMPLY WITH THE REQUIRED REPORTING
PROVISIONS.

(3) IF THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY FAILS TO COMPLY WITH
THE REQUIRED REPORTING PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION WITHIN 30 DAYS
AFTER BEING CONTACTED BY THE POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION WITH A
REQUEST TO COMPLY, THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AND THE
POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION JOINTLY SHALL REPORT THE NONCOMPLIANCE
TO THE GOVERNOR AND THE LEGISLATIVE POLICY COMMITTEE OF THE
GENERAL ASSEMBLY.
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect
October 1, 2009.

June 6, 2009, 11:55 PM	#1
Dust Monkey Senior Member Join Date: April 24, 2007 Posts: 723	SWAT Team oversight. A good start. A good idea. Lets hope it goes nationwide This is what I, and many who think SWAT teams have been overused, has been waiting for. While I do not think it goes far enough, it does not punish agencies or individuals, it is a start to some sort of oversight other than the agencies policing themselves. I would like something like this to be public record for all to see. And I would love for it to go nationwide. I have already sent a copy to my state reps. Law Enforcement: Maryland Bill Would Require SWAT Team Monitoring view translation Printer Friendly Version Email this Article from Drug War Chronicle, Issue #573, 2/20/09 Last July, police in Prince Georges County, Maryland, made national news headlines when their SWAT team raided the home of Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo. Police had tracked a box containing marijuana to Calvo's porch, and when he carried the box inside upon returning home, the SWAT team struck. Team members broke down the door, restrained Calvo and his mother-in-law for hours, and shot and killed Calvo's two Labrador retrievers, one while running away. http://http://stopthedrugwar.org/chr...WAT_bill?print PolitickerMD cartoon about the Berwyn Heights raidIt would have been just another SWAT raid, except for two things: Calvo and his wife are well-liked public figures, and Calvo was an innocent victim. The real culprits in the case artfully protected their marijuana shipments by having them delivered to unknowing people, in this case the mayor of Berwyn Heights. Now, in the wake of the Calvo incident, as well as other well-known SWAT raids gone bad, such as the one last year in which a 26-year-old Lima, Ohio, woman was killed and the one a few months later in which a Pennsylvania FBI agent was shot dead by a homeowner who claimed she thought she was defending her family from intruders, a handful of Maryland legislators are trying to rein in the SWAT teams. A bill filed earlier this month, SB 447, would require police departments to monitor their SWAT team use and report it annually to the governor and the General Assembly. As the bill puts it: "On a monthly basis, beginning January 1, 2010, a law enforcement agency that maintains a SWAT team shall report the following information to the office of the attorney general using the format developed under subsection (c) of this section: (1) the number of times the SWAT team was activated and deployed by the law enforcement agency in the previous month; (2) without identifying an exact address, the approximate location within or outside of the jurisdiction of the law enforcement agency to which the SWAT team was deployed for each activation; (3) the reason for each activation and deployment of the SWAT team; (4) the legal authority, including type of warrant, if any, for each activation and deployment of the SWAT team; and (5) the result of each activation and deployment of the SWAT team, including: (i) the number of arrests made, if any; (ii) the type of evidence seized, if any; (iii) whether a forcible entry was made; (iv) whether a weapon was discharged by a SWAT team member; and (v) whether a person or domestic animal was injured or killed by a SWAT team member." "This bill is an important first step that doesn't restrict [SWAT] use," Calvo told the DC Examiner. "It merely brings transparency." And that would be a much needed beginning to reining in the SWAT teams, which were originally intended for hostage situations and other high-risk affairs, but have ended up being used routinely in drug raids and other law enforcement endeavors. If the bill passes, Maryland would be the first state in the nation to demand accountability from its law enforcement agencies when it comes to SWAT teams. http://http://mlis.state.md.us/2009r...sb/sb0447f.pdf EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW. [Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law. sb0447 SENATE BILL 447 E4 9lr1314 CF 9lr2326 By: Senators Muse, Frosh, Haines, Mooney, Peters, Raskin, and Stone Introduced and read first time: February 4, 2009 Assigned to: Judicial Proceedings A BILL ENTITLED AN ACT concerning Public Safety – SWAT Team Activation and Deployment – Reports FOR the purpose of requiring, at certain intervals beginning on a certain date, a law enforcement agency that maintains a SWAT team to report certain information to the Office of the Attorney General using a certain format; requiring the Police Training Commission, in consultation with the Office, to develop a standardized format that certain law enforcement agencies shall use in reporting certain data relating to the activation and deployment of certain SWAT teams to the Office and to certain local officials; requiring a law enforcement agency to compile certain information as a report in a certain format and to submit the report to the Office no later than a certain date following the period that is the subject of the report; requiring the Office to analyze and summarize certain reports of law enforcement agencies and to submit a report of the analyses and summaries to the Governor, the General Assembly, and each law enforcement agency before a certain date of each year; providing that, if a law enforcement agency fails to comply with the reporting provisions of this Act, the Office shall report the noncompliance to the Police Training Commission; providing that the Commission shall contact a certain law enforcement agency and request that the agency comply with this Act under certain circumstances; providing that, if a certain law enforcement agency fails to comply with certain reporting provisions within a certain period after being contacted by the Commission, the Office of the Attorney General and the Commission jointly shall make a certain report to the Governor and the Legislative Policy Committee of the General Assembly; defining certain terms; and generally relating to the activation and deployment of SWAT teams. BY adding to Article – Public Safety Section 3–507 Annotated Code of Maryland (2003 Volume and 2008 Supplement) 2 SENATE BILL 447 SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: Article – Public Safety 3–507. (A) (1) IN THIS SECTION THE FOLLOWING WORDS HAVE THE MEANINGS INDICATED. (2) “LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY” MEANS AN AGENCY THAT IS LISTED IN § 3–101(E) OF THIS TITLE. (3) “LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER” MEANS ANY PERSON WHO, IN AN OFFICIAL CAPACITY, IS AUTHORIZED BY LAW TO MAKE ARRESTS AND WHO IS AN EMPLOYEE OF A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT IS SUBJECT TO THIS SECTION. (4) “POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION” MEANS THE UNIT WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ESTABLISHED UNDER § 3–202 OF THIS TITLE. (5) “SWAT TEAM” MEANS A SPECIAL UNIT COMPOSED OF TWO OR MORE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WITHIN A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY TRAINED TO DEAL WITH UNUSUALLY DANGEROUS OR VIOLENT SITUATIONS AND HAVING SPECIAL EQUIPMENT AND WEAPONS, SUCH AS RIFLES MORE POWERFUL THAN THOSE CARRIED BY REGULAR POLICE OFFICERS. (B) ON A MONTHLY BASIS, BEGINNING JANUARY 1, 2010, A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT MAINTAINS A SWAT TEAM SHALL REPORT THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION TO THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL USING THE FORMAT DEVELOPED UNDER SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION: (1) THE NUMBER OF TIMES THE SWAT TEAM WAS ACTIVATED AND DEPLOYED BY THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY IN THE PREVIOUS MONTH; (2) WITHOUT IDENTIFYING AN EXACT ADDRESS, THE APPROXIMATE LOCATION WITHIN OR OUTSIDE OF THE JURISDICTION OF THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY TO WHICH THE SWAT TEAM WAS DEPLOYED FOR EACH ACTIVATION; (3) THE REASON FOR EACH ACTIVATION AND DEPLOYMENT OF THE SWAT TEAM; SENATE BILL 447 3 (4) THE LEGAL AUTHORITY, INCLUDING TYPE OF WARRANT, IF ANY, FOR EACH ACTIVATION AND DEPLOYMENT OF THE SWAT TEAM; AND (5) THE RESULT OF EACH ACTIVATION AND DEPLOYMENT OF THE SWAT TEAM, INCLUDING: (I) THE NUMBER OF ARRESTS MADE, IF ANY; (II) THE TYPE OF EVIDENCE SEIZED, IF ANY; (III) WHETHER A FORCIBLE ENTRY WAS MADE; (IV) WHETHER A WEAPON WAS DISCHARGED BY A SWAT TEAM MEMBER; AND (V) WHETHER A PERSON OR DOMESTIC ANIMAL WAS INJURED OR KILLED BY A SWAT TEAM MEMBER. (C) THE POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION, IN CONSULTATION WITH THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, SHALL DEVELOP A STANDARDIZED FORMAT THAT EACH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY SHALL USE IN REPORTING DATA TO THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL UNDER SUBSECTION (B) OF THIS SECTION. (D) A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY SHALL: (1) COMPILE THE DATA DESCRIBED IN SUBSECTION (B) OF THIS SECTION FOR EACH MONTH AS A REPORT IN THE FORMAT REQUIRED UNDER SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION; AND (2) NO LATER THAN THE 15TH DAY OF THE MONTH FOLLOWING THE MONTH THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT, SUBMIT THE REPORT TO: ( I) THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL; AND (II) 1. THE LOCAL GOVERNING BODY OF THE JURISDICTION SERVED BY THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT EMPLOYS THE SWAT TEAM THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT; OR 2. IF THE JURISDICTION SERVED BY THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY THAT EMPLOYS THE SWAT TEAM THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT IS A MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE JURISDICTION. 4 SENATE BILL 447 (E) (1) THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL SHALL ANALYZE AND SUMMARIZE THE MONTHLY REPORTS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES SUBMITTED UNDER SUBSECTION (D) OF THIS SECTION. (2) THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL SHALL SUBMIT A REPORT OF THE ANALYSES AND SUMMARIES OF THE REPORTS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES DESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (1) OF THIS SUBSECTION TO THE GOVERNOR, THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AS PROVIDED IN § 2–1246 OF THE STATE GOVERNMENT ARTICLE, AND EACH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY BEFORE SEPTEMBER 1 OF EACH YEAR. (F) (1) IF A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY FAILS TO COMPLY WITH THE REPORTING PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION, THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL SHALL REPORT THE NONCOMPLIANCE TO THE POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION. (2) ON RECEIPT OF A REPORT OF NONCOMPLIANCE, THE POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION SHALL CONTACT THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY AND REQUEST THAT THE AGENCY COMPLY WITH THE REQUIRED REPORTING PROVISIONS. (3) IF THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY FAILS TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIRED REPORTING PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION WITHIN 30 DAYS AFTER BEING CONTACTED BY THE POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION WITH A REQUEST TO COMPLY, THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AND THE POLICE TRAINING COMMISSION JOINTLY SHALL REPORT THE NONCOMPLIANCE TO THE GOVERNOR AND THE LEGISLATIVE POLICY COMMITTEE OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect October 1, 2009. __________________ Civilian Date: 14 Century 1 : a specialist in Roman or modern civil law. If you are not subject to the UCMJ, you are a Civilian. I don't care one bit what updated dictionaries say.