SALISBURY, Md. - The death of 19-year-old Anton Black while in the custody of the Greensboro Police Department in 2018 led Maryland lawmakers to pass the Police Reform and Accountability Act, or Anton's Law.
Part of the legislation requires each county in Maryland to form a civilian police accountability board.
Civil rights advocate Carl Snowden, of the Caucus of African-American Leaders, says the boards are important.
"It will give greater transparency to police and community interaction. In the past...it was always the officer's word against the victim or alleged victim," he said.
Queen Anne's County Sheriff Gary Hofmann says he worked with the county to form its board, but he still has concerns.
"Some of them when they created the police accountability board saw this as a one stop shop to fix issues in policing, when they probably should've looked at the individual agencies themselves," he said.
The police accountability boards will field complaints lodged against law enforcement agencies.
Working with an Administrative Charging Committee and Trial Boards, a recommendation on punishment will be made by the board.
The sheriff cannot give a punishment less than the board's recommendation.
Worcester County Sheriff Matt Crisafulli says he feels that is where issues could arise.
"There could be some concern to where their recommendation may seem to be a little bit too harsh, but we can't go below that, so moving forward that may be a concern," he said.
But Crisafulli stresses that he is confident the county has selected qualified candidates to sit on the board.
Police accountability boards will also be required to reflect the demographic makeup of their counties. Snowden says that is a crucial component.
"The most effective police accountability board will be the board that reflects the community that it serves," he said.
Many counties on the Eastern Shore have fallen behind their Western Shore counterparts, either still planning the rollout of a police accountability board or still accepting applications for civilian members.
The state required police accountability boards to be implemented by July 1, 2022.
Snowden believes if the boards are not fully implemented by the end of this year, he expects lawsuits will be filed.