HB 492

Courtroom Security - Minimum Adequate Security Standard

Sponsor: Chair, Judiciary CommitteeCommittee: JudiciarySubject: Courts and Court Personnel - StatewideStatus: Approved by the Governor - Chapter 475 (as of Sep 4, 2026)

What this bill does

Official synopsis

Establishing minimum adequate security standards for courtroom security at all courthouse facilities; requiring a court security officer to meet the qualifications for a special police officer; and requiring a minimum number of court security officers be present for certain types of proceedings.

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Analysis reads the bill text, the fiscal note, and the witness list. It is generated by Claude and reviewed by nobody, so check the source documents before you rely on it.

Testimony (15)

MGA witness list

FAV 11FavorableFWA 2Favorable with amendmentsUNF 1UnfavorableINFO 1Information only

Position	Witness	Organization	Testimony
FAV	DeMinco, Lynne	BCRW	Position only
FAV	Trasatti, Marisa	Bowman and Brooke, LLP	Oral
FAV	Fader, Chief Justice Matthew	Maryland Judiciary	Oral
FAV	Morrisey, Chief Judge John	Maryland Judiciary	Oral + Written (PDF)
FAV	Wilson, Brett	Maryland Judiciary	Oral
FAV	Ruth, Laure	Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence	Written (PDF)
FAV	Sarkar, Shaolilobbyist	Maryland State Bar Association	Written (PDF)
FAV	Brown, Kirsten	Maryland State's Attorneys' Association	Written (PDF)
FAV	OMalley, Catherine	Women's Law Center	Position only
FAV	Chair, Judiciary Committee, Chair, Judiciary Committee	Individual	Oral
FAV	Mauer, William	Individual	Position only
UNF	Sample, Sarah	Maryland Association of Counties	Oral + Written (PDF)
FWA	Blendy, Nicholas	Baltimore City Sheriff's Office	Oral + Written (PDF)
FWA	Jackson, Samiralobbyist	MD Police Chiefs Assoc. and MD Sheriffs Assoc.	Written (PDF)
INFO	Themelis, Nina	Mayor's Office of Government Relations	Written (PDF)

Organizations on record

Baltimore City Sheriff's OfficeFWA 1

BCRWFAV 1

Bowman and Brooke, LLPFAV 1

Maryland Association of CountiesUNF 1

Maryland JudiciaryFAV 3

Maryland Network Against Domestic ViolenceFAV 1

Maryland State Bar AssociationFAV 1

Maryland State's Attorneys' AssociationFAV 1

Mayor's Office of Government RelationsINFO 1

MD Police Chiefs Assoc. and MD Sheriffs Assoc.FWA 1

Women's Law CenterFAV 1

Registered lobbyists who testified

FAVSarkar, ShaoliMaryland State Bar AssociationRegistered for: Maryland State Bar Association, Inc.

FWAJackson, SamiraMD Police Chiefs Assoc. and MD Sheriffs Assoc.Registered for: Critical Response Group; Dell Technologies Inc.; Empower; Forward Financing; HDR Engineering, Inc.; Maryland Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs…