MARVIN MANDEL, Governor                      1321

CHAPTER 561
(House Bill 3)

AN ACT to add new Sections 594A and 594B to Article 27 of the
Annotated Code of Maryland (1967 Replacement Volume), title
"Crimes and Punishments," subtitle "Venue, Procedure and
Sentence," to follow immediately after Section 594 thereof and
to be under the new subheading "Arrests," to confirm and estab-
lish, and, as to certain offenses, to extend, the authority of a
police officer to make an arrest without a warrant; to extend the
power to arrest without a warrant to police officers and to other
authorized persons during times of public crisis or emergency;
and generally related to arrests without warrants.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland,
That new Sections 594A, and 594B be and they are hereby added
to Article 27 of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1967 Replace-
ment Volume), title "Crimes and Punishments," subtitle "Venue,
Procedure and Sentence," to follow immediately after Section 594
thereof and to be under the new subheading "Arrests," and to read
as follows:

Arrests
594A.

(a)    A police officer may arrest without a warrant any person
who commits, or attempts to commit, any felony or misdemeanor in
the presence of, or within the view of, such officer.

(b)    A police officer may, when he has probable cause to believe
that a felony or misdemeanor is being committed in his presence
or within his view, arrest without a warrant any person whom he
may reasonably believe to have committed such offense.

(c)    A police officer may arrest a person without a warrant if
he has probable cause to believe that a felony has been committed
or attempted and that such person has committed or attempted to
commit a felony whether or not in his presence or view.

(d)    A police officer may arrest a person without a warrant if
he has probable cause to believe:

(1)    that an offense listed in subsection (e) of this section has
been committed, and

(2)    that the person has committed such offense, and

(3)    that unless the person is immediately arrested,
(i) he may not be apprehended, or

(ii) he may cause injury to the person or damage to the prop-
erty of one or more other persons, or

(in) he may tamper with, dispose of, or destroy evidence.

(e)    The offenses referred to in subsection (d) of this section
are:

(1) Those offenses specified in the following sections of Article
27, as they may be amended from time to time: