Terms Used In Maryland Code, PUBLIC SAFETY 3-303

  • Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
  • 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
  • including: means includes or including by way of illustration and not by way of limitation. See
  • 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
  • state: means :

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

    (2) the District of Columbia. See
(a) The following entities may apply for the appointment of special police officers for the following purposes:

(1) a municipal corporation, county, or other governmental body of the State, in order to protect property owned, leased, or regularly used by the governmental body or any of its units;

(2) another state, or subdivision or unit of another state, that has an interest in property located wholly or partly in this State, in order to protect the property;

(3) a college, university, or public school system in the State, in order to protect its property or students; or

(4) a person that exists and functions for a legal business purpose, in order to protect its business property.

(b) The applicant for a commission shall be at least 18 years old.

(c) (1) This subsection does not apply to an applicant for an initial commission who, within 5 years prior to application, has:

(i) completed a basic training course for police officers approved by the Secretary in consultation with the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission;

(ii) completed a basic training course for police officers similar to the course described in item (i) of this paragraph in another state or for the federal government;

(iii) separated from a law enforcement agency in good standing; or

(iv) completed training approved by the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission for a special police officer at a State institution of higher education.

(2) An applicant for an initial commission shall complete a training course approved by the Secretary in consultation with the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission consisting of at least 80 hours of instruction, including instruction on:

(i) criminal law;

(ii) constitutional procedural requirements relating to search, seizure, and arrest; and

(iii) the appropriate use of force.