Maryland’s top legal leaders call for criminal justice reforms to reduce racial disparities

Maryland’s top legal leaders call for criminal justice reforms to reduce racial disparities

A new report from some of Maryland’s top legal advocates and officials calls for sweeping changes to reduce the racial disparities that exist at every level of the state’s criminal justice system. The disparities are widespread: Black Marylanders make up less than a third of the state’s population but account for more than half of all arrests, more than half of the jail population, and 71% of the prison and parole populations. The report from th…