Md. Code Regs. 12.04.10.04

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 12, June 14, 2024

Section 12.04.10.04 - Uniform State Disciplinary Matrix

A. Violation Levels.

(1) Level One. The first level of violation category indicates a first sustained occurrence of a police officer's misconduct.

(2) Level Two. The second level of a violation category indicates a second sustained occurrence of a police officer's misconduct within the time periods specified in §D of this regulation and during which a sustained level one violation was committed.

(3) Level Three. The third level of a police misconduct violation category indicates a third sustained occurrence of a police officer's misconduct within the time periods specified in §D of this regulation and during which a sustained level one and level two violation was committed.

B. Disciplinary Ranges.

(1) The range of disciplinary penalties within the Uniform State Disciplinary Matrix includes:

(a) A formal written counseling;

(b) A letter of reprimand;

(c) Loss of leave;

(d) Suspension and loss of pay;

(e) Demotion; and

(f) Termination.

(2) A law enforcement agency shall determine the number of hours that constitutes a penalty day, based on a police officer's work schedule.

C. Additional Corrective Measures.

(1) In addition to the disciplinary penalties established within the Uniform State Disciplinary Matrix, a law enforcement agency head, ACC, or trial board following a determination to impose administrative charges may:

(a) Refer the police officer to:

(i) Counseling;

(ii) An employee assistance program;

(iii) Remedial training; or

(iv) Another police officer assistance program permitted by a law enforcement agency's policy;

(b) Suspend or remove a police officer from a take-home car program; and

(c) Suspend a police officer from secondary employment.

(2) The options listed in §C(1) of this regulation may be independently imposed by police management in addition to any administrative charges imposed by an ACC or trial board.

D. Violation Categories.

(1) The Uniform State Disciplinary Matrix includes six designated violation categories that represent a progression in the severity of police misconduct violation.

(2) Category A Violation.

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Category A: Conduct that has or may have a minimal negative impact on operations or professional image of the law enforcement agency.	One: 1st Violation	Formal Written Counseling to Letter of Reprimand
	Two: 2nd Violation in 24 Months	Formal Written Counseling to Up to 1 Day Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
	Three: 3rd Violation in 24 Months	GO TO CATEGORY B LEVEL 1

(3) Category B Violation.

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Category B: Conduct that has or may have a negative impact on the operations or professional image of law enforcement agency; or that negatively impacts relationships with other officers, agencies, or the public.	One: 1st Violation	Letter of Reprimand to Up to 2 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
	Two: 2nd Violation in 36 Months	1 Day Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay to Up to 3 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
	Three: 3rd Violation in 36 Months	GO TO CATEGORY C LEVEL 1

(4) Category C Violation.

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Category C: Conduct that involves a risk to safety or that has or may have a pronounced negative impact on the operations or professional image of the law enforcement agency or a member, or on relationships with other officers, agencies, or the public.	One: 1st Violation	2 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay to Up to 4 Days Loss of Pay
	Two: 2nd Violation in 48 Months	3 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay to Up to 5 Days Loss of pay
	Three: 3rd Violation in 48 Months	GO TO CATEGORY D LEVEL 1

(5) Category D Violation.

(a)

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Category D: Conduct substantially contrary to the values of the law enforcement agency or that substantially interferes with its mission, operations, or professional image, or that involves a serious risk to officer or public safety, or intentionally violates law enforcement agency policy.	One: 1st Violation	5 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay to Up to 15 Days Loss of Pay
	Two: 2nd Violation in 60 Months	10 Days Loss of Pay to Up to 20 Days Loss of Pay
	Three: 3rd Violation in 60 Months	GO TO CATEGORY E LEVEL 1

(b) Demotion or reduction in rank may also be considered as a part of the disciplinary penalty for Category D Violation.

(6) Category E Violation.

(a)

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Category E: Conduct that involves misuse of authority, unethical behavior (not involving false reporting or false statements), or an act that could result in an adverse impact on an officer or public safety or to the professionalism of the law enforcement agency or a violation of any misdemeanor.	One: 1st Violation	15 Days Loss of Pay to 25 Days Loss of Pay up to Termination
	Two: 2nd Violation in 60 Months	15 Days Loss of Pay to 30 Days Loss of Pay up to Termination
	Three: 3rd Violation in 60 Months	GO TO CATEGORY F LEVEL 1

(b) Demotion or reduction in rank may also be considered as a part of the disciplinary penalty for Category E Violation.

(7) Category F Violation.

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Category F: Any violation of law, policy, rule or regulation which: foreseeably results in death or serious bodily injury; or constitutes a willful and wanton disregard of the law enforcement agency's mission, vision, and values; or involves any act or omission which demonstrates a serious lack of the integrity, ethics, or character related to an employee's fitness to hold their position; or involves egregious misconduct substantially contrary to the standards of conduct reasonably expected, to include those whose sworn duty is to uphold the law; or involves conduct which constitutes the failure to adhere to any condition of employment required or mandated by law, including any 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) (Lautenberg) violations.	One: Any Violation	TERMINATION

(8) Special Circumstance Categories.

(a)

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Driving Under The Influence Category 1: Any off-duty driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs which would constitute a violation of law.	One: 1st Violation	15 Days Loss of Pay to Termination*
	Two: 2nd Violation	30 Days Loss of Pay to Termination*
	Three: 3rd Violation	Termination*
Category 2: Any on-duty or off-duty in a departmental vehicle driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs which would constitute a violation of law.	One: 1st Violation	Termination*
*Termination may be imposed as discipline unless prohibited by an Executive Order or superseding government policy.

(b)

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
Failure to Appear for Court and MVA Hearings Category 1: Intentional or purposeful failure to appear for any properly summoned court appearance which is the result of action taken as a law enforcement officer. This category also includes MVA hearings.	One: 2 violations in 1 year	Formal Written Counseling to Formal Written Counseling
	Two: 2 additional violations in 2 years	Formal Written Counseling to Up to 2 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
Note: The penalty cycle resets one calendar year from the date of the first violation.

(c)

Categories and Descriptions	Level	Disciplinary Range Mitigating Factors - Aggravating Factors
	One: 1st Violation up to 12 months	Formal Written Counseling to Letter of Reprimand
Departmental Collisions Category 1: Minor Damage* to Police Vehicle and/or	Two: 2nd Violation within 0-24 months	Formal Written Counseling to Up to 2 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
Other Property or Vehicle*	Three**: 3 or more Violations within 0-36 months	Letter of Reprimand to Up to 5 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
	One: 1st Violation up to 12 months	Formal Written Counseling to Up to 1 Day Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
Category 2: Major Damage to Police Vehicle, Other Property, or Vehicle	Two: 2nd Violation within 0-24 months	Letter of Reprimand to Up to 3 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
	Three**: 3 or more Violations within 0-36 months	Letter of Reprimand to Up to 10 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
Category 3: Injury to Law Enforcement Personnel or Civilian If gross negligence or reckless operation of a police vehicle is involved in any collision that results in serious injury or death the disciplinary range shall increase up to and including termination.	One: 1st Violation up to 12 months	Formal Written Counseling to Up to 2 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
	Two: 2nd Violation within 0-24 months	Letter of Reprimand to Up to 5 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
	Three**: 3 or more Violations within 0-36 months	Letter of Reprimand to Up to 14 Days Loss of Leave or Loss of Pay
* Law Enforcement Agencies may establish a dollar amount as a guideline for determining the level of severity (minor vs major). ** Driver retraining may be imposed at any level but shall impose for three or more at-fault departmental collisions.

(9) Violations that Fall into More than One Violation Category.

(a) Some acts of police misconduct may fall into more than one violation category depending on the category definition.

(b) If an act of police misconduct falls into more than one violation category, an ACC, agency head, or trial board, as applicable, shall review the totality of circumstances related to the act and the violation category definition descriptions prior to choosing the category, level, and range.

(10) Violations not found in the Uniform State Disciplinary Matrix shall be assigned to a violation category based on the circumstances of the police misconduct and the violation category definitions.

Md. Code Regs. 12.04.10.04

Regulation .04 adopted effective 49:27 Md. R. 1111, eff. 1/9/2023