Pollock v. Patuxent Institution Board of Review
Decision Date | 08 May 2003 |
Docket Number | No. 106,106 |
Citation | 823 A.2d 626,374 Md. 463 |
Parties | Michael POLLOCK, v. PATUXENT INSTITUTION BOARD OF REVIEW. |
Court | Maryland Court of Appeals |
Mark Gitomer (The Law Office of Mark Gitomer, on brief), Owings Mills, for petitioner/cross-respondent.
Andrew H. Baida, Solicitor General (J. Joseph Curran, Jr., Attorney General of Maryland and Scott S. Oakley, Assistant Attorney General, on brief), Baltimore, for respondent-cross-petitioner.
Argued before BELL, C.J., ELDRIDGE, RAKER, WILNER, CATHELL, HARRELL, BATTAGLIA, JJ.
Since 1991 there has been recurring litigation between Michael Pollock, petitioner/cross-respondent (hereafter "petitioner") and the Patuxent Institution Board of Review, respondent/cross-petitioner (hereafter the "Board"). This is the second time a case between these parties has been before this Court. We granted certiorari in this appeal to decide whether positive urinalysis drug test results of a sample supplied by petitioner should have been excluded from evidence at petitioner's parole revocation hearing due to the failure of the staff of the Patuxent Institution (hereafter "Patuxent") to strictly comply with its own directive setting forth technical collection and documentation procedures for urinalysis samples.
In a previous appeal petitioner raised the issue that Patuxent's procedures had not been complied with and further that the chain of custody as to his specimen was improperly preserved. Pollock v. Patuxent Institution Board of Review, 358 Md. 656, 751 A.2d 496 (2000) (Pollock I). We remanded this case back to the Circuit Court for Howard County for it to decide whether the Board's decision not to renew petitioner's parole on the basis of the urinalysis results was arbitrary or capricious. On remand, the circuit court found that the urinalysis results were properly admitted and considered by the Board in revoking, and then not renewing, petitioner's parole order and specifically found that the Board's decision was not arbitrary or capricious. On September 3, 2002, the Court of Special Appeals affirmed. Pollock v. Patuxent Institution Board of Review, 146 Md.App. 54, 806 A.2d 388 (2002). On December 19, 2002, we granted both the writ of certiorari filed by petitioner and the conditional cross-petition filed by the Board. Pollock v. Patuxent, 372 Md. 429, 813 A.2d 257 (2002) (Pollock II). Petitioner presents two questions for our review:
The Board essentially asked this Court to consider the same question as petitioner's question one, but phrased its question as follows:
"Does the Board's technical non-compliance with an internal Patuxent directive, which sets forth procedures governing the collection and handling of urine specimens from Patuxent inmates for the purpose of detecting illicit drug use, provide a basis for either invalidating the Board's revocation and non-renewal of Pollock's parole, or excluding the urinalysis drug test results upon which the Board based its decision?"
We adopt the "Accardi doctrine" and hold that it is applicable to administrative hearings in Maryland. We hold, however, that in the case sub judice, the Court of Special Appeals did not erroneously apply one of the exceptions under Accardi and its progeny. Patuxent's failure to comply with a part of its directive2 pertaining to the collection and handling of urine specimens does not require the reversal of the Board's action to revoke and not renew petitioner's parole because the failure to comply technically with all of the PID 110-18 did not implicate fundamental constitutional rights of petitioner nor violate statutorily mandated procedure. What occurred constituted a technical mistake which did not substantially prejudice petitioner.3 We hold that when the Accardi doctrine, with its exceptions, is applicable, a complainant must also show prejudice to have the agency action invalidated.
Because this appeal involves a long-standing dispute and is the result of recurring litigation, the facts and legal proceedings to date need not be rewritten as the facts of this contested administrative case are settled. As such, we adopt the facts and legal proceedings which were recently and thoroughly summarized by Judge Adkins when this case was below. She wrote:
"FACTS AND LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
The Test
`CHAIN-OF-CUSTODY OF SPECIMEN:
Jones also used number 4697 on that Incident Report.
"A third form completed at the time Pollock submitted his urine sample, was entitled:
`Friends Medical Laboratory
Laboratory Testing Requisition Form'
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