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§ 26-102. Denial of access to public school buildings or grounds

West's Annotated Code of MarylandEducationEffective: January 1, 2024

West's Annotated Code of Maryland
Education (Refs & Annos)
Division IV. Other Education Provisions [Titles 21-End] (Refs & Annos)
Title 26. Prohibitions and Penalties (Refs & Annos)
Subtitle 1. School Security (Refs & Annos)
Effective: January 1, 2024
MD Code, Education, § 26-102
§ 26-102. Denial of access to public school buildings or grounds
Currentness
School resource officer defined
(a) In this section, “school resource officer” means a law enforcement officer as defined under § 1-101(e) of the Public Safety Article who has been assigned to a school in accordance with a memorandum of understanding between the chief of a law enforcement agency as defined under § 3-101(b) of the Public Safety Article and the local education agency.
Persons denied access to buildings or grounds of public school institutions
(b) The governing board, president, superintendent, principal, or school resource officer of any public institution of elementary, secondary, or higher education, or a person designated in writing by the board or any of these persons, may deny access to the buildings or grounds of the institution to any other person who:
(1) Is not a bona fide, currently registered student, or staff or faculty member at the institution, and who does not have lawful business to pursue at the institution;
(2) Is a bona fide, currently registered student at the institution and has been suspended or expelled from the institution, for the duration of the suspension or expulsion; or
(3) Acts in a manner that disrupts or disturbs the normal educational functions of the institution.
Demands for identification and qualification to use or enter premises
(c) Administrative personnel, authorized employees of any public institution of elementary, secondary, or higher education, and persons designated in subsection (b) of this section may demand identification and evidence of qualification from any person who desires to use or enter the premises of the institution.
Agreements with law enforcement agencies
(d) The governing board of any public institution of elementary, secondary, or higher education may enter into an agreement with appropriate law enforcement agencies to carry out the responsibilities of this section when:
(1) The institution is closed; or
(2) None of the persons designated in subsection (b) of this section are present in the buildings or on the grounds of the institution.
Misdemeanor violations
(e) A person is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine not exceeding $1,000, imprisonment not exceeding 6 months, or both if he:
(1) Trespasses on the grounds of any public institution of elementary, secondary, or higher education;
(2) Fails or refuses to leave the grounds of any of these institutions after being requested to do so by a person designated in subsection (b) of this section as being authorized to deny access to the buildings or grounds of the institution; or
(3) Willfully damages or defaces any building, furnishing, statue, monument, memorial, tree, shrub, grass, or flower on the grounds of any of these institutions.

Credits

Added by Acts 1978, c. 22, § 2, eff. July 1, 1978. Amended by Acts 1980, c. 66; Acts 1981, c. 467; Acts 1983, c. 442; Acts 1998, c. 21, § 1, eff. April 14, 1998; Acts 2001, c. 153, § 1, eff. July 1, 2001; Acts 2002, c. 19, § 1, eff. April 9, 2002; Acts 2003, c. 17, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2003; Acts 2023, c. 49, § 6.
Formerly Art. 27, § 577B.
MD Code, Education, § 26-102, MD EDUC § 26-102
Current through legislation effective through June 1, 2024, from the 2024 Regular Session of the General Assembly. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
End of Document