Maryland State Police Hit with Class Action Lawsuit Over Alleged Discrimination Against Officers of Color

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The Maryland Department of State Police faces a proposed class action lawsuit that alleges it has systemically discriminated against officers of color, including by maintaining a hostile work environment, denying promotions, and disparately implementing discipline for “unfounded, unwarranted” reasons. 

The 36-page complaint was filed by three officers of color who allege they and similarly situated Black, Hispanic, Asian-American, South Asian and Middle Eastern officers have been subject to discrimination on the basis of their race, color, and/or national origin. The complaint was filed on October 24, more than three months after the United States Department of Justice announced that it had opened an investigation into the Maryland State Police with regard to its alleged discrimination in hiring and promotion. 

The filing asks the court to injunctively “stop this ongoing discrimination,” which the case alleges includes “unduly harsh discipline,” the systematic denial of promotions, and harassment and retaliation. 

“The right to be free from racial discrimination and harassment in employment and retaliation for assertion of one’s civil rights were clear and well-established rights, known to [the Maryland Department of State Police],” the lawsuit states. 

According to the suit, the Maryland State Police has maintained centralized disciplinary policies and procedures that disparately impose on officers of color “unfounded, unwarranted and overly severe” penalties—including suspensions, terminations, demotions, transfers and denials of promotions and other opportunities for advancement—over seemingly “minor, negligible, and/or non-existent violations of” the defendant’s policies. 

“[The Maryland State Police] does not subject similarly situated Caucasion officers to similar discipline for comparable or even more severe offenses, and in fact has a pattern or practice of declining to charge or investigate Caucasian officers for known and/or alleged misconduct,” the suit claims. 

Moreover, the case says the Maryland State Police often takes a lengthy amount of time to investigate, charge, and process disciplinary actions against officers of color. Per the suit, these delays are “not justified by the subject matter, facts, or policy,” and cause officers to experience lost income and reputational harm. 

The lawsuit claims the Maryland State Police has also commenced “unwarranted and unfounded” investigatory and disciplinary proceedings against officers of color, authorized by the Internal Affairs Department; imposed overly severe disciplinary penalties; and transferred officers of color to “less favorable and/or more dangerous” assignments and shifts. In other instances, the defendant has denied officers of color opportunities to earn overtime or assigned them to positions for which the commutes are lengthy, the suit alleges. 

The lawsuit further claims that the Maryland State Police has a pattern or practice of denying officers of color placement in specialized units, contributing to the “systemic disadvantages” officers of color have in the promotional process. According to the case, the Maryland State Police requires an officer to have no internal investigations open against them in order to be considered for a specialized unit, something that also works against officers of color given they’re disproportionately involved in disciplinary proceedings, the complaint relays. 

The filing elaborates that troopers within specialized units have many more training opportunities and thus often receive a higher score on the resumé portion of the Maryland State Police promotional process. Patrol officers, on the other hand, have fewer opportunities to train due to their workload and hours, and often receive a lower score, the suit says. 

“Even the Officers of Color who receive high scores on the overall ranking are not promoted, including due to pretextual, discriminatory and punitive disciplinary measures taken against them, which impede their ability to be promoted.” 

The case goes on to allege that the Maryland State Police has maintained a hostile work environment, including subjecting officers of color to “racist comments and symbols,” such as the apparent use of a paper training dummy at a state police shooting range with a Black face and “Afro wig” and printing a commemorative coin that states “Make Waldorf Great Again.” 

The Maryland State Police has also retaliated against officers of color who complain about discrimination, treating them less favorably than white officers who report discrimination, the complaint alleges. 

The lawsuit looks to cover all Black, Hispanic, Asian, South Asian and Middle Eastern officers of color with the Maryland State Police who were denied promotions and/or disciplined, including through charges, investigations, suspensions, demotions, and/or terminations, and otherwise subject to discrimination by the Maryland State Police at any time from October 24, 2019 to the present. 

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