DAMAR BROWN v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Appeals, Getty, July 28, 2017,
Charging- Criminal Information- A defendant charged by Criminal Information with a misdemeanor is not entitled to a preliminary hearing.

Facts
In 2015, Baltimore Police Department officers from the SED (Lehman, Harris, and Hill) observed Brown exhibiting characteristics of an armed person.
After a struggle, during which Brown struck one of the officers in the face, Brown was taken into custody and the officers recovered a loaded .22 caliber revolver along with a ski mask.
Brown was charged in District Court on a Statement of Charges with (1) wear/carry/transport a handgun, (2) 2nd-degree assault, and (3) resisting arrest – all misdemeanors.
The State’s Attorney’s Office then filed a Criminal Information against Brown to transfer the case to Circuit Court, charging those same three misdemeanors.
Brown asked a judge to dismiss the Information, claiming he was entitled to a preliminary hearing under CP 4-102 and had not received one. Judge Ausby of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City agreed with Brown and dismissed the case.
The State appealed and the Court of Special Appeals reversed the trial judge’s decision.
Brown then requested that the Court of Appeals look at the case, arguing that every criminal information requires a preliminary hearing.
Law from the Case
Held: The Court of Appeals disagreed. Only those charged by Criminal Information with a felony not in the jurisdiction of district court are entitled to a Preliminary Hearing.
Charging- A case can be transferred to Circuit Court in the following ways:
– Indictment (by Grand Jury)
– Criminal Information (by State’s Attorney)
– Jury Trial Prayer from District Court
– Appeal from conviction in District Court
Criminal Information- Preliminary Hearing- A Preliminary Hearing is held before a judge to determine whether there is probable cause to charge the defendant with the crimes listed in a Criminal Information.
Criminal Information- Preliminary Hearing- A Preliminary Hearing is held with both the defendant and State present and able to ask questions. This is different than a Grand Jury proceeding, which is secret and held without the defendant present.
Criminal Information- Preliminary Hearing- A preliminary hearing is only necessary where a Criminal Information is filed charging a felony that is not within the jurisdiction of the District Court of Maryland.
Criminal Information – Preliminary Hearing- A preliminary hearing is optional (after request and at the discretion of the court) for a felony within the jurisdiction of both the Circuit Court and the District Court.
Criminal Information- Preliminary Hearings- No preliminary hearing is required for a misdemeanor charge.