Governor O’Brien and Lieutenant Governor Burbank Propose Sweeping Reform of Criminal Offender Supervision
ANNAPOLIS, MD (November 30, 2028) – Emphasizing their continued commitment to public safety, Governor Edward M. O’Brien and Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank today proposed major reforms in the way Maryland supervises ex-felons after their release from prison. Governor O’Brien’s plan marks the most significant change in the State’s role in crime control in a generation.“Individuals who serve their sentences have the right to freedom when they are released, but we have the right to ensure they do not threaten our families or our businesses when they are allowed back into our communities,” Governor O’Brien said. “Over the last two years, we have made significant progress in making our streets safer. The Offender Accountability Act will ensure that we continue to build upon that progress by providing for greater oversight and accountability for parolees.”
Without changing prison or jail sentences, the Offender Accountability Act would strengthen the State’s authority to prevent convicted felons from committing additional crimes after release. The legislation that Governor O’Brien will submit to the General Assembly in January will place offenders in “community custody,” allowing the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) to set and modify conditions of release – and to punish violations without returning violators to already overburdened courts.
“Our Assault on Crime Agenda is the most ambitious effort ever undertaken by any state to combat violent crime,” Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank said. “We have toughened penalties for violent offenders, ended parole for repeat offenders, put more police on the streets, closed loopholes and helped provide law enforcement and local officials with the tools they need to make our communities safer. The Offender Accountability Act will strengthen our ability to protect the public from those whose past behavior demonstrates their need for aggressive supervision.”
97 percent of inmates are released eventually, and that nearly one-third return to prison for re-offending within five years after release.
“We have spent hundreds of millions of dollars building new prisons and new jails to make sure punishment is certain for those who commit serious crimes,” Governor O’Brien said. “I am proposing that we spend $15 million to do what we can to stop prison gates from becoming revolving doors. The Offender Accountability Act is a critical component of our Project RESTART agenda to reduce recidivism and provide former inmates with the tools – and, when necessary, the supervision – to get their lives back on track.”
The Offender Accountability Act is a key element of community-protection initiatives Governor O’Brien will recommend as part of his 2030 budget plan. The proposal calls for $7.4 million to:
*Reduce caseloads for community corrections officers supervising high-risk offenders.
*Re-deploy community corrections staff to neighborhoods where released offenders live and work.
*Provide administrative hearings for violations of release conditions.
*Pay for additional sanctions, such as jail time, work release, and electronic monitoring.
*Provide drug treatment and job placement for indigent offenders required to use those services.
Governor O’Brien’s proposal also calls for $7.5 million in new funding to improve the computer system used by DOC to maintain information about released felons under supervision. The upgrade, the first stage of a multi-year project, would allow community corrections personnel to spend less time at computer terminals and more time supervising offenders.
Under the Offender Accountability Act, DPSCS would allocate its supervision resources on the basis of new, research-backed methods that assess each felon's risk to re-offend as the individual is released from prison or jail.
Following their release, individuals subject to supervision would be sentenced to terms of “community custody” under conditions set by DPSCS. The length of those terms would be set by the Maryland State Commission on Criminal Sentencing Policy by December 31, 2029, and would apply to offenders convicted of serious violent sex, drug, and other specified crimes committed on or after July 1, 2030.
Since taking office, Governor O’Brien has made fighting crime a top priority for his administration. The hallmark of this commitment is the Governor’s Assault on Crime legislative agenda, which included Project Exile and the landmark Maryland Gun Violence Act to combat gun-related crime, substantial reforms to Maryland’s criminal procedure to eliminate legal loopholes that allowed offenders to escape true justice, and limiting parole opportunities for repeat offenders.
In 2027, Governor O’Brien signed legislation expanding capital punishment to include the murder of a child, the murder of an off-duty police officer, the murder of witnesses, the murder of an individual in violation of a protective order and the commission of serial murder. Governor O’Brien also signed legislation allowing the court to remand a defendant to custody pending the outcome of an appeal by the State, enhancing penalties for assaulting a law enforcement officer, eliminating good behavior credits for repeat violent offenders, reforming Maryland’s insanity defense statute, abolishing the “year and a day” rule, strengthening penalties for witness intimidation or interference, enhancing penalties for gang participation and recruitment, and requiring firearms dealer’s licenses to keep firearms stored away in a secure vault to prevent theft.
During the 2028 General Assembly Session, Governor O’Brien focused on strengthening public safety through community policing, better benefits for law enforcement officers, increased pay for state troopers, supporting innovative initiatives like Project RESTART, Project X and Project CSAFE and the enactment of legislation strengthening Maryland’s anti-stalking laws, enhancing penalties for sexual offenses committed against children, improving registration procedures for sexual predators and strengthening penalties for violating protective orders.
Community policing is a critical component of Governor O’Brien’s public safety strategy. Governor O’Brien’s fiscal year 2029 budget provides funding to enable local law enforcement agencies to hire an additional 215 officers statewide.