Senate Bills 284 and 285: A 'Bribery Exception' to Maryland’s Legislative Privilege

Abstract

This document is an Adobe version of a PowerPoint presentation that was presented to the Maryland General Assembly in support of Senate Bills 284 and 285. S.B. 284 & 285 respond to the fact that the bribery indictments of Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon and Baltimore City Councilwoman Helen Holton were dismissed on grounds of the “legislative privilege” in MD Const., art. III, § 18. The paper goes on to show how bribery was not meant to be protected under "legislative privilege" by tracing the legislative history of the statutes, and applicable sections of the Md. Constitution.

Keywords: legislation, Maryland, bribery, politicians, legislative history, legislative intent, legislative privilege, legal defenses, criminal law, criminal procedure, legal loopholes, criminal defenses

JEL Classification: K14, K19, K39, K42, K49, H79