Committee debates on law enforcement get personal

When the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee met for a voting session Friday morning, committee Chair William C. Smith Jr. (D-Montgomery) started off on a pleasant note to honor one of his colleagues, Sen. William G. Folden (R-Frederick).

“Before we start, I want to wish Sen. Folden happy birthday. Happy birthday, Sen. Folden,” Smith said.

There’s “no place I’d rather be,” said Folden, a police officer in Frederick who will enter his 30th year in law enforcement in December.

Sen. William G. Folden (R-Frederick) at his desk during a Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee meeting on April 5, 2024. Photo by William J. Ford.

But that wasn’t the case earlier this week: Folden was absent from two straight committee voting sessions, because he was frustrated with some of his colleagues.

It started with heated debate Tuesday when the committee discussed Senate Bill 177, a measure to increase penalties for corrections officers and other law enforcement authorities who have sex with people in their custody.

Within 15 minutes, Folden took exception to some observations by Sen. Jill P. Carter (D-Baltimore City) about the law enforcement profession.

“Police officers are not like other professions. They are literally the only people that we give a license to kill,” Carter said during the committee session. “An officer under certain circumstances has a gun and a badge and they have an ability to take a life when they see fit. Nobody else has that in their employment.”

Folden was incensed.

“That is completely, absolutely reckless and inappropriate,” he said. “Nowhere is there a license to kill. You’re asking men and women to take their lives and put them in front of danger every day and to make split second responses and reactions to very deadly situations. It’s not called a license to kill. It’s called a use force to protect themselves and others.”

Moments later, Folden wasn’t in his seat.

Folden confirmed in an interview that he left the meeting.

“It was de-escalation. I don’t have to stand there and constantly be attacked. I get that out in the street,” he said in an interview Friday.

Another reason for not attending the voting sessions, Folden said, is he can present his viewpoints before the full Senate.

“I can argue the same points in the chamber in front of everybody and get my message heard on a broader base than sitting in [the committee room] and having those inappropriate comments made and not having them properly shut down,” he said.

Yet there was more criticism about law enforcement during Friday’s committee meeting. It came from Sen. Ariana B. Kelly (D-Montgomery), during a discussion about a bill on self-administered sexual assault kits.

Kelly, a sexual assault survivor, recalled when she took a rape exam in a hospital, that “was worse for me than the rape in terms of the trauma.”

“I don’t trust the criminal justice system. I just don’t,” she said. “I don’t trust the police and prosecutors. There is so much victim-blaming.”

Kelly acknowledged Folden and said he does support sexual assault survivors.

But Folden said he still felt like he and his profession have been under attack.

“Those comments perpetuate the divisive nature that’s occurring in our communities and law enforcement,” he said. “Those comments are doing nothing but eroding public trust.”

Generally speaking, Smith said his goal as a committee chair is to allow an exchange of ideas without anyone using improper or inflammatory language.

“If someone says something that offends you, calmly address it and explain why that offends you. So that there’s an opportunity for growth and learning for everybody,” he said Friday morning. “Unfortunately, that can’t happen when tempers flare and people extricate themselves from that situation and disengage. It’s all about constructive engagement. That’s what we tried to facilitate.”

Besides the two voting sessions he didn’t attend Wednesday and Thursday, Folden also missed the second Senate floor session late Thursday.

Folden said Friday he was absent from the floor due to a family obligation.

Several people who spoke about Folden said he’s principled and cares about what’s right and wrong.

“I just tend to believe that the Lord makes us all different, and we just need to understand each other’s quirks,” said Sen. Mike McKay (R-Garrett, Allegany and Washington), who serves on the Judicial Proceedings panel. But “there isn’t anybody that’s more dedicated to being right and wrong, and principled, than him.”

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