Terms Used In Maryland Code, CRIMINAL PROCEDURE 13-501

  • Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • County: means a county of the State or Baltimore City. See
  • Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
  • Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. Source:
  • Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
  • Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
  • Person: includes an individual, receiver, trustee, guardian, personal representative, fiduciary, representative of any kind, corporation, partnership, business trust, statutory trust, limited liability company, firm, association, or other nongovernmental entity. See
  • Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • Remainderman: One entitled to the remainder of an estate after a particular reserved right or interest, such as a life tenancy, has expired.
  • state: means :

    (1) a state, possession, territory, or commonwealth of the United States; or

    (2) the District of Columbia. See
  • Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
(a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated.

(b) “Chief executive officer” means:

(1) for Baltimore City, the Mayor;

(2) for a charter county, the county executive or, if there is no county executive, the county council;

(3) for a code county, the county commissioners;

(4) for a commission county, the county commissioners; or

(5) for a municipal corporation, the legislative body established by municipal charter.

(c) “Convicted” means found guilty.

(d) “Final disposition” means dismissal, entry of a nolle prosequi, marking of a criminal charge “stet” on the docket, entry of a not guilty verdict, pronouncement of sentence, or imposition of probation under § 6-220 of this article.

(e) “Forfeiting authority” means:

(1) the unit or person designated by agreement between the State‘s Attorney for a county and the chief executive officer of the governing body having jurisdiction over assets subject to forfeiture to act on behalf of the governing body regarding those assets; or

(2) if the seizing authority is a unit of the State, a unit or person that the Attorney General or the Attorney General’s designee designates by agreement with a State’s Attorney, county attorney, or municipal attorney to act on behalf of the State regarding assets subject to forfeiture by the State.

(f) “Governing body” includes:

(1) the State, if the seizing authority is a unit of the State;

(2) a county, if the seizing authority is a unit of a county;

(3) a municipal corporation, if the seizing authority is a unit of a municipality; and

(4) Baltimore City, if the seizing authority is the Baltimore Police Department.

(g) “Human trafficking law” means § 3-324, § 3-1102, § 3-1103, § 11-207, § 11-304, and § 11-305 of the Criminal Law Article.

(h) “Lien” includes a mortgage, a deed of trust, a pledge, a security interest, an encumbrance, and a right of setoff.

(i) “Lienholder” means a person who has a lien or a secured interest on property created before the seizure.

(j) “Local financial authority” means:

(1) if the seizing authority is a unit of a county, the treasurer or director of finance of the county; or

(2) if the seizing authority is a unit of a municipal corporation, the treasurer or director of finance of the municipal corporation.

(k) (1) “Owner” means a person having a legal, equitable, or possessory interest in property.

(2) “Owner” includes:

(i) a co-owner;

(ii) a life tenant;

(iii) a remainderman to a life tenancy in real property;

(iv) a holder of an inchoate interest in real property; and

(v) a bona fide purchaser for value.

(l) “Proceeds” means profits derived from a violation of the human trafficking law or property obtained directly or indirectly from those profits.

(m) (1) “Property” includes:

(i) real property and anything growing on or attached to real property;

(ii) motor vehicles; and

(iii) money.

(2) “Property” does not include:

(i) an item unlawfully in the possession of a person other than the owner when used in connection with a violation of the human trafficking law; or

(ii) a lessor’s interest in property subject to a bona fide lease, unless the forfeiting authority can show that the lessor participated in a violation of the human trafficking law or that the property was the proceeds of a violation of the human trafficking law.

(n) (1) “Real property” means land or an improvement to land.

(2) “Real property” includes:

(i) a leasehold or any other limited interest in property;

(ii) an easement; and

(iii) a reversionary interest in a 99-year ground lease renewable forever.

(o) “Seizing authority” means a law enforcement unit in the State that is authorized to investigate violations of the human trafficking law and that has seized property under this subtitle.