Governor's Bill to Limit Police Spying

Gov. Martin O'Malley plans to call for legislation that would prohibit police from spying on activists they do not suspect of criminal activity, following a controversial surveillance case involving the Maryland State Police.

The move comes in response to the revelation last summer that the agency had assigned undercover troopers to spy on peaceful opponents of the death penalty and the Iraq war for 14 months under Gov. Robert L Ehrlich Jr (R). The police Homeland Security and Intelligence Division also kept files on nonviolent groups, ranging from Amnesty International to grass-roots activists fighting electricity rate increases, labeling them and 53 individuals "terrorists" in an internal database.

Aides to O'Malley (D), who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the governor is crafting his legislative package, said he is eager to show that his administration has been responsive to the episode, which attracted national attention. O'Malley and Police Superintendent Terrence B. Sheridan have denounced the monitoring. But Sheridan has said he believes the problems could be addressed by internal police regulations.

Police spokesman Greg Shipley said that he was not aware of the governor's legislative priorities.

Lawmakers in the General Assembly, some of whom are preparing similar bills for consideration in the session that begins today, said they welcomed the governor's leadership.

"We know the police overstepped the bounds of propriety," said Sen. Brian E. Frosh (D-Montgomery), chairman of the Judicial Proceedings Committee, which will hear the bills. "Now we ought to pass a law."

Robert Devers, executive director of the Maryland Troopers Association, said the fraternal order representing 1,350 active troopers has not taken a position on the surveillance episode or any legislation.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland broke open the case in July when a state police lawyer turned over 14 month of surveillance logs the group sought under public records laws. The ACLU is calling on the legislature to approve the "First Amendment Protection Act of 2009," which would prohibit police from covert criminal intelligence investigations and compiling dossiers without an "articulable suspicion of criminal activity."

Under the ACLU proposal, any monitoring would require approval from the police superintendent, and the target of any illegal monitoring would have the right to sue. Lawmakers and aides to O'Malley said the administration bill is likely to cover similar ground.

"You need clear standards going forward so everyone is on the same page," ACLU attorney David Rocah said.

In another development, Sheridan has rehired as his chief of staff the state police commander who oversaw the spying operation. Lt. Col. Thomas Coppinger, who retired in July as chief of the intelligence bureau, was aware of the spying, according to a state review.

Shipley confirmed the hiring and said that Sheridan is "confident in Coppinger's qualities and abilities."