A service of Salisbury University and University of Maryland Eastern Shore

Racial Slur Sparks Court Fight Over Police Personnel Records

WASHINGTON (AP) - Maryland's highest court has agreed to hear a case involving the state's public records law and whether it requires Maryland State Police to turn over records involving a trooper who used a racial slur.

The court said Wednesday it would take the case of Teleta Dashiell, who filed a complaint after a Maryland State Police trooper accidentally left her a telephone message containing a racial slur. After she complained, Dashiell was told in a letter that that "appropriate disciplinary action" had been taken and was documented in the trooper's personnel file. But when Dashiell filed a Maryland Public Information Act request to learn more, the agency told her no records could be released.

The Court of Appeals, Maryland's highest court, will likely hear arguments in May.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email
Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.