The City of Baltimore and the State of Maryland may prosecute video makers/freelance investigators James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles for doing something the state-run media should have been doing [Article - Maryland May Prosecute ACORN Sting Video Makers]. Fox News is the only news agency to give even the slightest attention to the investigation Mr. O’Keefe and Miss Giles performed, uncovering legally questionable activities involving workers from both the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. ACORN offices. We’ll see how the leftist “main stream” media spins this one. Right now, they are giving next to nothing as far as coverage of this developing scandal is concerned.

After speaking to a person who is well-versed in the application and enforcement of state law, according to the interpretation of Maryland state statutes, the man and woman who posed as a pimp and prostitute in both the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. offices of ACORN in the commission of an investigation, did not commit illegal acts and should not be charged with a crime. There is legal precedence for this and the Maryland statutes have been scrutinized in a well-known case of the past [Reference - A Summary of Maryland's Interception Law]. It should be brought out that the statutes covered in this post are Maryland state statutes and do not cover the City of Baltimore or Washington, D.C. local and/or municipal statutes.

Taken from the State of Maryland statutes, Article – Courts and Judicial Proceedings:

§10–402.

(a)   Except as otherwise specifically provided in this subtitle it is unlawful for any person to:

(1)   Willfully intercept, endeavor to intercept, or procure any other person to intercept or endeavor to intercept, any wire, oral, or electronic communication;

(2)   Willfully disclose, or endeavor to disclose, to any other person the contents of any wire, oral, or electronic communication, knowing or having reason to know that the information was obtained through the interception of a wire, oral, or electronic communication in violation of this subtitle; or

(3)   Willfully use, or endeavor to use, the contents of any wire, oral, or electronic communication, knowing or having reason to know that the information was obtained through the interception of a wire, oral, or electronic communication in violation of this subtitle.

(b)   Any person who violates subsection (a) of this section is guilty of a felony and is subject to imprisonment for not more than 5 years or a fine of not more than $10,000, or both.

(c)    (1)    (i)   It is lawful under this subtitle for an operator of a switchboard, or an officer, employee, or agent of a provider of wire or electronic communication service, whose facilities are used in the transmission of a wire or electronic communication to intercept, disclose, or use that communication in the normal course of his employment while engaged in any activity which is a necessary incident to the rendition of his service or to the protection of the rights or property of the provider of that service, except that a provider of wire communications service to the public may not utilize service observing or random monitoring except for mechanical or service quality control checks.

(ii)    1.   It is lawful under this subtitle for a provider of wire or electronic communication service, its officers, employees, and agents, landlords, custodians or other persons to provide information, facilities, or technical assistance to persons authorized by federal or State law to intercept wire, oral, or electronic communications or to conduct electronic surveillance, if the provider, its officers, employees, or agents, landlord, custodian, or other specified person has been provided with a court order signed by the authorizing judge directing the provision of information, facilities, or technical assistance.

2.   The order shall set forth the period of time during which the provision of the information, facilities, or technical assistance is authorized and specify the information, facilities, or technical assistance required. A provider of wire or electronic communication service, its officers, employees, or agents, or landlord, custodian, or other specified person may not disclose the existence of any interception or surveillance or the device used to accomplish the interception or surveillance with respect to which the person has been furnished an order under this subparagraph, except as may otherwise be required by legal process and then only after prior notification to the judge who granted the order, if appropriate, or the State’s Attorney of the county where the device was used. Any such disclosure shall render the person liable for compensatory damages. No cause of action shall lie in any court against any provider of wire or electronic communication service, its officers, employees, or agents, landlord, custodian, or other specified person for providing information, facilities, or assistance in accordance with the terms of a court order under this subtitle.

(2)    (i)   This paragraph applies to an interception in which:

1.   The investigative or law enforcement officer or other person is a party to the communication; or

2.   One of the parties to the communication has given prior consent to the interception.

(ii)   It is lawful under this subtitle for an investigative or law enforcement officer acting in a criminal investigation or any other person acting at the prior direction and under the supervision of an investigative or law enforcement officer to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication in order to provide evidence:

1.   Of the commission of:

A.    Murder;

B.    Kidnapping;

C.    Rape;

D.    A sexual offense in the first or second degree;

E.    Child abuse in the first or second degree;

F.    Child pornography under § 11-207, § 11-208, or § 11-208.1 of the Criminal Law Article;

G.    Gambling;

H.    Robbery under § 3-402 or § 3-403 of the Criminal Law Article;

I.    A felony under Title 6, Subtitle 1 of the Criminal Law Article;

J.    Bribery;

K.    Extortion;

L.    Dealing in a controlled dangerous substance, including a violation of § 5-617 or § 5-619 of the Criminal Law Article;

M.    A fraudulent insurance act, as defined in Title 27, Subtitle 4 of the Insurance Article;

N.    An offense relating to destructive devices under § 4-503 of the Criminal Law Article;

O.    Sexual solicitation of a minor under § 3-324 of the Criminal Law Article;

P.    An offense relating to obstructing justice under § 9-302, § 9-303, or § 9-305 of the Criminal Law Article;

Q.    Sexual abuse of a minor under § 3-602 of the Criminal Law Article; or

R.    A conspiracy or solicitation to commit an offense listed in items A through Q of this item; or

2.   If:

A.    A person has created a barricade situation; and

B.    Probable cause exists for the investigative or law enforcement officer to believe a hostage or hostages may be involved.

(3)   It is lawful under this subtitle for a person to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication where the person is a party to the communication and where all of the parties to the communication have given prior consent to the interception unless the communication is intercepted for the purpose of committing any criminal or tortious act in violation of the Constitution or laws of the United States or of this State.

(4)    (i)   It is lawful under this subtitle for a law enforcement officer in the course of the officer’s regular duty to intercept an oral communication if:

1.   The law enforcement officer initially lawfully detained a vehicle during a criminal investigation or for a traffic violation;

2.   The law enforcement officer is a party to the oral communication;

3.   The law enforcement officer has been identified as a law enforcement officer to the other parties to the oral communication prior to any interception;

4.   The law enforcement officer informs all other parties to the communication of the interception at the beginning of the communication; and

5.   The oral interception is being made as part of a video tape recording.

(ii)   If all of the requirements of subparagraph (i) of this paragraph are met, an interception is lawful even if a person becomes a party to the communication following:

1.   The identification required under subparagraph (i)3 of this paragraph; or

2.   The informing of the parties required under subparagraph (i)4 of this paragraph.

(5)   It is lawful under this subtitle for an officer, employee, or agent of a governmental emergency communications center to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication where the officer, agent, or employee is a party to a conversation concerning an emergency.

(6)    (i)   It is lawful under this subtitle for law enforcement personnel to utilize body wires to intercept oral communications in the course of a criminal investigation if there is reasonable cause to believe that a law enforcement officer’s safety may be in jeopardy.

(ii)   Communications intercepted under this paragraph may not be recorded, and may not be used against the defendant in a criminal proceeding.

(7)   It is lawful under this subtitle for a person:

(i)   To intercept or access an electronic communication made through an electronic communication system that is configured so that the electronic communication is readily accessible to the general public;

(ii)   To intercept any radio communication that is transmitted:

1.   By any station for the use of the general public, or that relates to ships, aircraft, vehicles, or persons in distress;

2.   By any governmental, law enforcement, civil defense, private land mobile, or public safety communications system, including police and fire, readily accessible to the general public;

3.   By a station operating on an authorized frequency within the bands allocated to the amateur, citizens band, or general mobile radio services; or

4.   By any marine or aeronautical communications system;

(iii)   To intercept any wire or electronic communication the transmission of which is causing harmful interference to any lawfully operating station or consumer electronic equipment, to the extent necessary to identify the source of the interference; or

(iv)   For other users of the same frequency to intercept any radio communication made through a system that utilizes frequencies monitored by individuals engaged in the provision or the use of the system, if the communication is not scrambled or encrypted.

(8)   It is lawful under this subtitle:

(i)   To use a pen register or trap and trace device as defined under § 10-4B-01 of this title; or

(ii)   For a provider of electronic communication service to record the fact that a wire or electronic communication was initiated or completed in order to protect the provider, another provider furnishing service toward the completion of the wire or electronic communication, or a user of that service, from fraudulent, unlawful, or abusive use of the service.

(9)   It is lawful under this subtitle for a person to intercept a wire or electronic communication in the course of a law enforcement investigation of possible telephone solicitation theft if:

(i)   The person is an investigative or law enforcement officer or is acting under the direction of an investigative or law enforcement officer; and

(ii)   The person is a party to the communication and participates in the communication through the use of a telephone instrument.

(10)   It is lawful under this subtitle for a person to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication in the course of a law enforcement investigation in order to provide evidence of the commission of vehicle theft if:

(i)   The person is an investigative or law enforcement officer or is acting under the direction of an investigative or law enforcement officer; and

(ii)   The device through which the interception is made has been placed within a vehicle by or at the direction of law enforcement personnel under circumstances in which it is thought that vehicle theft may occur.

(d)    (1)   Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, a person or entity providing an electronic communication service to the public may not intentionally divulge the contents of any communication (other than one to the person or entity providing the service, or an agent of the person or entity) while in transmission on that service to any person or entity other than an addressee or intended recipient of the communication or an agent of the addressee or intended recipient.

(2)   A person or entity providing electronic communication service to the public may divulge the contents of a communication:

(i)   As otherwise authorized by federal or State law;

(ii)   To a person employed or authorized, or whose facilities are used, to forward the communication to its destination; or

(iii)   That were inadvertently obtained by the service provider and that appear to pertain to the commission of a crime, if the divulgence is made to a law enforcement agency.

(e)    (1)   Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection or in subsection (f) of this section, a person who violates subsection (d) of this section is subject to a fine of not more than $10,000 or imprisonment for not more than 5 years, or both.

(2)   If an offense is a first offense under paragraph (1) of this subsection and is not for a tortious or illegal purpose or for purposes of direct or indirect commercial advantage or private commercial gain, and the wire or electronic communication with respect to which the offense occurred is a radio communication that is not scrambled or encrypted, and:

(i)   The communication is not the radio portion of a cellular telephone communication, a public land mobile radio service communication, or a paging service communication, the offender is subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 or imprisonment for not more than 1 year, or both; or

(ii)   The communication is the radio portion of a cellular telephone communication, a public land mobile radio service communication, or a paging service communication, the offender is subject to a fine of not more than $500.

(3)   Unless the conduct is for the purpose of direct or indirect commercial advantage or private financial gain, conduct which would otherwise be an offense under this subsection is not an offense under this subsection if the conduct consists of or relates to the interception of a satellite transmission that is not encrypted or scrambled and that is transmitted:

(i)   To a broadcasting station for purposes of retransmission to the general public; or

(ii)   As an audio subcarrier intended for redistribution to facilities open to the public, but not including data transmissions or telephone calls.

(f)    (1)   A person who engages in conduct in violation of this subtitle is subject to suit by the federal government or by the State in a court of competent jurisdiction, if the communication is:

(i)   A private satellite video communication that is not scrambled or encrypted and the conduct in violation of this subtitle is the private viewing of that communication, and is not for a tortious or illegal purpose, or for purposes of direct or indirect commercial advantage, or private commercial gain; or

(ii)   A radio communication that is transmitted on frequencies allocated under Subpart D of Part 74 of the Rules of the Federal Communications Commission that is not scrambled or encrypted and the conduct in violation of this subtitle is not for a tortious or illegal purpose or for purpose of direct or indirect commercial advantage or private commercial gain.

(2)    (i)   The State is entitled to appropriate injunctive relief in an action under this subsection if the violation is the person’s first offense under subsection (e)(1) of this section and the person has not been found liable in a prior civil action under § 10-410 of this subtitle.

(ii)   In an action under this subsection, if the violation is a second or subsequent offense under subsection (e)(1) of this section or if the person has been found liable in a prior civil action under § 10-410 of this subtitle, the person is subject to a mandatory civil fine of not less than $500.

(3)   The court may use any means within its authority to enforce an injunction issued under paragraph (2)(i) of this subsection, and shall impose a civil fine of not less than $500 for each violation of an injunction issued under paragraph (2)(i) of this subsection.

However, the ACORN members who appeared complicit with the “pimp’s” and “prostitute’s” wishes and desires, may be charged with failing to report a felony (child neglect and prostitution) to the proper authorities [Document - RAINN - Maryland Mandatory Reporting Requirements Regarding Children]. They could also be charged with what is defined as criminal facilitation and criminal conspiracy. To note, no “act of furtherance” was committed by any of the ACORN workers. Therefore, a heavier burden of proof would be required to substantiate any criminal facilitation and conspiracy charges.

Taken from the State of Maryland statutes, Article – Family Law:

§5–701.

(a)   Except as otherwise provided in § 5-705.1 of this subtitle, in this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated.

(b)   “Abuse” means:

(1)   the physical or mental injury of a child by any parent or other person who has permanent or temporary care or custody or responsibility for supervision of a child, or by any household or family member, under circumstances that indicate that the child’s health or welfare is harmed or at substantial risk of being harmed; or

(2)   sexual abuse of a child, whether physical injuries are sustained or not.

(c)   “Administration” means the Social Services Administration of the Department.

(d)    (1)   Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, “central registry” means any component of the Department’s confidential computerized database that contains information regarding child abuse and neglect investigations.

(2)   “Central registry” does not include a local department case file.

(e)   “Child” means any individual under the age of 18 years.

(f)   Repealed.

(g)    (1)   “Educator or human service worker” means any professional employee of any correctional, public, parochial or private educational, health, juvenile service, social or social service agency, institution, or licensed facility.

(2)   “Educator or human service worker” includes:

(i)   any teacher;

(ii)   any counselor;

(iii)   any social worker;

(iv)   any caseworker; and

(v)   any probation or parole officer.

(h)   “Family member” means a relative by blood, adoption, or marriage of a child.

(i)    (1)   “Health practitioner” includes any person who is authorized to practice healing under the Health Occupations Article or § 13-516 of the Education Article.

(2)   “Health practitioner” does not include an emergency medical dispatcher.

(j)   “Household” means the location:

(1)   in which the child resides;

(2)   where the abuse or neglect is alleged to have taken place; or

(3)   where the person suspected of abuse or neglect resides.

(k)   “Household member” means a person who lives with, or is a regular presence in, a home of a child at the time of the alleged abuse or neglect.

(l)   “Identifying information” means the name of:

(1)   the child who is alleged to have been abused or neglected;

(2)   a member of the household of the child;

(3)   a parent or legal guardian of the child; or

(4)   an individual suspected of being responsible for abuse or neglect of the child.

(m)   “Indicated” means a finding that there is credible evidence, which has not been satisfactorily refuted, that abuse, neglect, or sexual abuse did occur.

(n)    (1)   “Law enforcement agency” means a State, county, or municipal police department, bureau, or agency.

(2)   “Law enforcement agency” includes:

(i)   a State, county, or municipal police department or agency;

(ii)   a sheriff’s office;

(iii)   a State’s Attorney’s office; and

(iv)   the Attorney General’s office.

(o)   Except as provided in §§ 5-705.1 and 5-714 of this subtitle, “local department” means the local department that has jurisdiction in the county:

(1)   where the allegedly abused or neglected child lives; or

(2)   if different, where the abuse or neglect is alleged to have taken place.

(p)   “Local department case file” means that component of the Department’s confidential computerized database that contains information regarding child abuse and neglect investigations to which access is limited to the local department staff responsible for the investigation.

(q)   “Local State’s Attorney” means the State’s Attorney for the county:

(1)   where the allegedly abused or neglected child lives; or

(2)   if different, where the abuse or neglect is alleged to have taken place.

(r)   “Mental injury” means the observable, identifiable, and substantial impairment of a child’s mental or psychological ability to function.

(s)   “Neglect” means the leaving of a child unattended or other failure to give proper care and attention to a child by any parent or other person who has permanent or temporary care or custody or responsibility for supervision of the child under circumstances that indicate:

(1)   that the child’s health or welfare is harmed or placed at substantial risk of harm; or

(2)   mental injury to the child or a substantial risk of mental injury.

(t)   “Police officer” means any State or local officer who is authorized to make arrests as part of the officer’s official duty.

(u)   “Record” means the original or any copy of any documentary material, in any form, including a report of suspected child abuse or neglect, that is made by, received by, or received from the State, a county, or a municipal corporation in the State, or any subdivision or agency concerning a case of alleged child abuse or neglect.

(v)   “Report” means an allegation of abuse or neglect, made or received under this subtitle.

(w)   “Ruled out” means a finding that abuse, neglect, or sexual abuse did not occur.

(x)    (1)   “Sexual abuse” means any act that involves sexual molestation or exploitation of a child by a parent or other person who has permanent or temporary care or custody or responsibility for supervision of a child, or by any household or family member.

(2)   “Sexual abuse” includes:

(i)   incest, rape, or sexual offense in any degree;

(ii)   sodomy; and

(iii)   unnatural or perverted sexual practices.

(y)   “Unsubstantiated” means a finding that there is an insufficient amount of evidence to support a finding of indicated or ruled out.