URGENT MISA UPDATE
SB 0455 - SPECIAL POLICE
Urgent Update: SB 0455 (Special Police Expansion) — High Liability, High Risk, Limited Infrastructure
Legal Notice: This blog post is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The Maryland Investigators and Security Association (MISA) is not a law firm and does not represent any reader or organization. Laws, regulations, agency policies, and enforcement practices may change and may vary by jurisdiction and specific facts. Readers should not act—or refrain from acting—based on this content without first seeking advice from qualified legal counsel and consulting applicable Maryland statutes, regulations, and guidance from the Maryland State Police and other relevant authorities. Reliance on this information is at the reader’s own risk.
Who is MISA?
MISA is the Maryland Investigators and Security Association, who advocated for SB 0455 on behalf of our members and the industry as a whole. Allowing special police to be employed by security agencies gives agencies an additional revenue source, allows people to advance their security career and earn more money, and allows properties to provide for their own protection, particularly during public police staffing shortages. MISA is a not-for-profit organization that supports the security and investigative industries in Maryland. MISA advocates for members' advancement through representation in to the Maryland legislature, the Maryland State Police licensing division and the Maryland Police and Corrections Training Commission. MISA members have a voice to the MISA Board. Stay informed and updated on changing laws impacting the security & investigation industries by joining MISA.
MISA membership is open to licensed security & investigation agencies in Maryland, licensed individual investigators, licensed individual security guards and special police officers. We welcome new members. To apply for membership, please go to MISAHQ.com or click here (Web).
Maryland’s SB 0455 expanded who may apply for Special Police Officer (SPO) appointments—allowing licensed security guard agencies to pursue SPO commissions for client properties. This change creates a powerful capability, but it also creates serious legal exposure for agencies and individual SPOs if deployed without robust governance, training, and coordination. This bill was originally vetoed by the govenor however, the veto was overturned. If the original veto had not been signed, it would have allowed MISA and other entities to develop new suggested regulations t and new bills into place.
Because the veto was overturned, it created a serious issue. Since the law went into effect 30 days after the veto was overturned, it significantly limited any input regarding regulations.
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YOU AS AN SPO ARE NOT A PUBLIC POLICE OFFICER.
IF YOU DO NOT KNOW THE LAW, DO NOT ARREST OR DETAIN PERSONS. -
YOUR JURISDICTION IS ONLY LIMITED TO THE PROPERTY THAT YOU ARE AUTHORIZED BY MSP TO PROTECT.
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KNOW THE 4th and 5th AMENDMENT PRINCIPLES REGARDING PROBABLE CAUSE, MIRANDA, REASONABLE ARTICULABLE SUSPICION, AND SEARCH AND SEIZURE.
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DO NOT TAKE ANY ACTION IF YOU ARE UNFAMILIAR WITH YOUR AUTHORITY AND LAW OR RESPONSIBILITIES
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YOU CANNOT CONDUCT TRAFFIC STOPS SOLEY FOR BEING CERTIFIED AS AN SPO
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DO NOT TRANSPORT PEOPLE.
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POLICE ARE NOT OBLIGATED TO TAKE CUSTODY OF ARRESTEES
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YOU ARE CIVILLY AND CRIMINALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR WRONGFUL ACTS
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UNIFORM PATCHES AND VEHICLE MARKINGS MUST CLEARLY SAY "SPECIAL POLICE" MSP MUST APPROVE. SEE MSP ADVISORY LD-PLU-26-001
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THE USE OF THE MARYLAND SEAL AND THE WORDS "STATE OF MARYLAND" ARE PROHIBITED BY LAW
WHY THIS IS URGENT
SPO authority is not the same as public police authority. SPO powers are commission-limited and property-limited, and they operate inside a different operational ecosystem than public law enforcement. If an SPO (or an agency) behaves as if they are “regular police,” the outcome can be catastrophic: civil-rights litigation, criminal exposure, loss of commission, license action, and reputational collapse.
The core risk: authority without a mature operating framework
MISA is seeing a widening gap between what the law now permits on paper and what many agencies are actually prepared to do safely in practice. In many cases, there is not yet a standardized, statewide “infrastructure” for private SPO operations that mirrors public policing—particularly around:
• Arrest/charging workflows (who charges, where, when, and how paperwork is completed)
• Detention/transport protocols and lawful custody transfer
• Booking acceptance processes and coordination with local facilities
• Use-of-force governance (policy, reporting, review, early warning indicators)
• Training equivalency vs. public police standards for high-liability actions
• Communications/dispatch integration (especially when rapid coordination is necessary)
• Supervision and command accountability (24/7 coverage, incident review, corrective action)
When those pieces aren’t in place, personnel will fill gaps with assumptions—and assumptions are where agencies get sued, officers get charged, and contracts get terminated.
The “badge trap”: when SPOs start acting like public police
One of the most dangerous failure modes is an SPO believing they are a public police officer—or presenting themselves that way to the public. That can drive unlawful or overbroad actions such as:
• Acting outside the commission/property scope
• Treating routine disputes as if they are empowered to conduct generalized policing
• Using enforcement tools without legal authority or proper training (searches, seizures, detentions)
• Escalating minor incidents into high-force encounters due to misread authority
Even if intentions are good, acting beyond lawful authority can turn an otherwise manageable call into a rights-violation claim.
What can happen to an agency or SPO
If SPOs or agencies operate unlawfully or outside scope, potential consequences include:
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POTENTIAL ROLL BACK OF SB 0455
• Personal criminal charges (depending on conduct)
• Civil-rights lawsuits (including claims alleging unlawful detention, excessive force, unreasonable search, false arrest, and failure to train/supervise)
• Loss or suspension of SPO commissions
• Maryland licensing action against the agency
• Contract termination and loss of insurability
• Permanent brand damage that impacts recruiting, client trust, and renewals
MISA’s immediate position
Until the operating framework is fully mature and an agency has documented controls in place, MISA strongly urges agencies to treat SPO deployment as a high-risk program—not a simple service add-on.
Training Organizations
It is incumbent upon you to ensure that persons who do not pass the requirements of MPCTC DO NOT GRADUATE FROM YOUR PROGRAM. ADDITIONALLY, YOU ARE CARRYING THE VICARIOUS LIABILITY OF THEIR ACTIONS. IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THAT TRAINING ORGANIZATIONS REVIEW AND PROVIDE MISA's "BEST PRACTICES" MEMO TO THEIR STUDENTS.
Where to get guidance now
For practical guidance, agencies should review MDSPOSA’s Best Practices Memorandum (recommended controls, governance, and implementation guidance) available at MDSPOSA.com.
MISA will continue working with stakeholders to encourage a safer, more standardized implementation environment, but agencies should assume that liability will attach immediately to how they deploy, supervise, and control SPO operations.
Bottom line: SB 0455 may create opportunity, but unmanaged SPO deployment can create existential risk for an agency and life-altering consequences for an officer. Deploy only with disciplined controls, clear limits, and legally defensible procedures.