Home / Advice / Maryland PIA-Forced Dismissal — No Officer Notes/Calibration Records
documentationUnited States · Maryland (Statewide)Difficulty: Medium

Maryland PIA-Forced Dismissal — No Officer Notes/Calibration Records

Under the Maryland Public Information Act (Md. Code, Gen. Prov. §4-101 et seq.), parking and camera enforcement records are public. Where the locality cannot produce officer notes, photographs, device calibration records, or operator certifications on request, the burden of proof at the hearing fails. PIA must respond within 30 days; failure to produce or unjustified withholding supports dismissal.

Legal basis

Md. Code, Gen. Prov. §4-101 et seq. (Maryland PIA); §4-203 (response timing); Md. Code, Transp. §26-204 (administrative due process)

Sample appeal wording

[DATE] [LOCALITY] PIA Officer CC: Parking Adjudication RE: PIA Request and Discovery for Citation #[NUMBER] Pursuant to Md. Code, Gen. Prov. §4-203, I request the following records related to citation #[NUMBER]: 1. All photographs taken by the issuing officer at the scene 2. Officer's contemporaneous field notes 3. Meter/device status and calibration log for [DATE] 4. Body-camera or vehicle-camera footage capturing the citation event 5. Certification/training of issuing officer or camera operator 6. The locality's record-retention schedule Response due within 30 days under §4-203. Failure to produce or unjustified withholding will be raised at hearing as grounds for dismissal under Md. Transp. §26-204. Sincerely, [NAME] [CONTACT]

Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.

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Sources

  • Md. Code, Gen. Prov. §4-101 et seq.
  • Md. Code, Gen. Prov. §4-203
  • Md. Code, Transp. §26-204

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