By Tashi McQueen
AFRO Staff Writer
tmcqueen@afro.com
In an overwhelming vote, the Maryland House of Delegates passed House Bill 552 on March 20 by a 129–1 margin. The measure would create a commission to investigate the history, operations and deaths of children held at the House of Reformation and Instruction for Colored Children, now the Cheltenham Youth Detention Center in Prince George’s County, Md..
State Del. Robin L. Grammer, Jr. (R-Md.-06) was the sole “no” vote on the bill. The AFRO reached out to Grammar and his office multiple times for comment on this matter, but did not receive a response.
The Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) operates the Cheltenham facility. HB 552, led by State Del. Jeffrie E. Long, Jr. (D-District 27B), originally called for an independent investigator, but the proposal was amended into a commission model as it was recommended out of committee March 19.
“We shifted the responsibilities of the investigation and tasked the Attorney General’s office to lead the commission,” said Long. “They’ve already had such a great track record in standing up commissions before.”
Long said the commission will also ensure that people who were either incarcerated or served time in a DJS facility are included in the process.
The bill is now nearly identical to State Sen. Will Smith’s (D-Md-20) Senate Bill 776 except for a minor technical difference. SB 776 has passed over to the House Government, Elections and Labor Committee, where it awaits a vote before it can move to the House floor and, if passed, to the governor’s desk.
“The Senate bill has passed the Senate chamber, the House bill has passed the House chamber, now we just have to move the Senate bill through our chamber and they have to move the House bill through their chamber, and when they come out they will be identical,” said Long.
On July 17, 2025, the state officially recognized an unmarked burial ground of at least 230 Black children imprisoned at HRICC more than 150 years ago. The facility opened in 1870, decades after the Maryland General Assembly decided children should have separate prison facilities from adults.
DJS testified in support of HB 552 with the change from an independent investigator to a commission.
“Commissions bring together multiple voices, including surviving relatives, affected community members, historians, advocates, public agency officials, and subject matter experts, thereby enhancing legitimacy, transparency, and trust in the process,” the department said in written testimony Feb. 19. “This collaborative approach has been used effectively in past Maryland legislative generated consensus-driven recommendations.”
Long highlighted a key takeaway for Black Marylanders.
“Maryland is a diverse state that has gotten so many things right with a Black governor, Black House speaker and an Afro-Latino speaker currently serving,” he said. “We are not afraid to recognize the errors of our past. Whenever we see a chance for improvement, to get it right and make the public aware so they know the truth of history and that it’s not Whitewashed, we do that.”
“I hope the General Assembly can serve as a shining example for the nation, especially at a time when history is being Whitewashed all around us,” he added.
If the bills succeed, Long said the commission will submit its report on or before Dec. 31, 2027. As of March 23, HB 552 is in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, awaiting action.