MARYLAND - A group of prominent Maryland Republicans this week announced their new 2024 Public Safety Agenda aimed at reversing some criminal justice laws they say enable criminals in Maryland.
The Joint Republican Caucus’ Agenda, unveiled yesterday, includes five central legislative proposals including increasing penalties against those who commit crimes with an illegal firearm, increasing the severity of gun theft from a misdemeanor to a felony, and scaling back recently passed juvenile justice laws that the Caucus says are too lenient on young offenders.
In a statement announcing and outlining the agenda, Senate Minority Leader Steve Hershey, who represents Caroline, Kent, Queen Anne's, and Cecil Counties, said the legislative push in 2024 will protect innocent Marylanders.
“The Joint Republican Caucus shares the concerns most important to Marylanders. As such, restoring safer communities is our top priority of the 2024 Legislative Session,” Hershey said.
In their first legislative goal of the Safety Agenda, the Republicans say they will reintroduce the Violent Firearms Offenders Act, first passed in the Maryland Senate in 2020 and then in 2021. That Act never made it to the House, according to the Republican Caucus.
The Act would increase the penalties for crimes committed with an illegal gun from 3 years to 5 years of prison and raise the maximum fine from $2,500 to $10,000. Under the Act, drug dealers using a firearm while committing a felony would also face harsher charges, as would anyone who sells or gives someone a gun knowing they will use it to commit a crime.
Next in the Agenda is the Gun Theft Felony Act of 2024, which would make the theft of a firearm a felony as opposed to a misdemeanor.
The Republican Caucus’ third segment of the Agenda, the Safe Communities Act of 2024, would eliminate Diminution Credits, or “Good Time Credits,” for 1st and 2nd Degree Murder. Bail would also be prohibited for those charged with a violent crime if the person already has pending charges for a previous violent offense.
“Too often, our headlines are filled with stories of victims whose lives ended tragically at the hands of someone with a history of violent crime who was released back into the community after serving just a few years in prison,” said House Minority Leader Jason Buckel. “To keep our communities safe, criminal sentences need to mean something – particularly as it relates to crimes of violence. To protect our citizens, we must ensure that dangerous violent offenders remain in prison.”
The fourth pillar of the Agenda is the Drug-Free Roadways Act of 2024, which would once again allow police to search vehicles using the smell of cannabis as probable cause. Police were prohibited from using the smell of cannabis as the sole reason for probable cause on July 1st of this year.
Finally, the Juvenile Justice Restoration Act is the fifth and last proposal in the Republican Safety Agenda, which the Republicans say is a “response to loud outcry from the public, law enforcement, and States Attorneys” regarding youth crime. Some of those calls for change to the juvenile justice laws have come from right here on the Eastern Shore.
The Juvenile Justice Restoration Act would require those under 13 whop use a gun in a commission of a crime to be under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court system, and do away with a 2023 law that required an attorney be present when a juvenile is questioned. Parental consent of questioning would instead be permissible under the Juvenile Justice Restoration Act.
Children arrested a third time for a nonviolent crime would also come under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court system, ending what the Republicans call a “catch and release” of juveniles committing nonviolent crimes such as car theft.
“No one here is advocating for the mass incarceration of children,” said Maryland Delegate Kathy Szeliga.“This is about saving lives. Not only is the number of juvenile perpetrators of these crimes increasing, but juveniles are also becoming victims. The number of youth homicides has increased 88% since 2018. This is madness, and it must end.”
WBOC reached out to Maryland Governor Wes Moore for his reaction to the Republican Caucus’ proposed Agenda.
“Since day one, Governor Moore has been clear that we are going to get right to the heart of the issue by using an all-of-the-above approach to reducing crime, not just focusing on crime sentencing, but crime prevention as well,” Moore’s Office told WBOC. “That’s why the governor’s first budget included $122 million to local law enforcement, $11 million for the Maryland Coordination and Analysis Center, and over $40 million state support for victim services.”
Moore’s Office says he is acting on public safety in a robust, strategic way, and will do it in partnership with the General Assembly.
