DENNIS MERCHANT v. STATE OF MARYLAND
MARSHALL TYRONE STODDARD v. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND MENTAL HYGIENE
Court of Appeals, Greene, May 23, 2016,
Separation of Powers – Incompetency – CP 3-114 – There is no constitutional Separation of Powers issue in CP 3-114.

The CoA upholds Judge Moylan’s opinion for the Court of Special Appeals in Byers, questioned by the AG and DHMH (how dare they!?!).

Following commitment to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH), a hearing may be held before an ALJ to determine whether release (conditional or discharge) is appropriate.

A circuit court judge is then called upon (in the event of a dispute) to determine whether the evidence “was substantial enough to support the conclusions and the recommendation of the ALJ.”