Anne Arundel County Sheriff's Office

The Anne Arundel County Sheriff's Office (AASO) is the law enforcement arm of the court sevicing the citizens of Anne Arundel County, Maryland. All deputy sheriffs are certified law enforcement officials with full authority of arrest.

History
The AASO was organized in 1650. John Norwood was appointed the first Sheriff and was paid in pounds of tobacco for services rendered (e.g., serving any writ such as a warant, tending prisoners, collecting taxes, etc). In 1776, with the formation of the Maryland Constitution, the Sheriff became an elected position with an initial term lasting one year. The term was then changed to three years, then two, and finally four years in 1926 where it remains today.

Duties
The duties of the AASO is to enforce writs of the court, maintain the county warrants, extradite prisoners from foreign jurisdictions, transport prisoners between holding facilities and the courts, and maintain courtroom decor. The AASO is also charged with assisting other law enforcement agencies as needed.

Organization

 * The current Sheriff is Ronald Bateman, serving his first term.

The AASO is divided into two bureaus:
 * the Security Bureau headed by Capt. LaPlanche. The Security Bureau is responsible for courtroom security, holding prisoners, and transporting prisoners.
 * the Operations Bureau headed by Capt. Smith. The Operations Bureau is responsible for Sheriff communications, serving writs of the court (e.g., protective orders, peace orders, criminal summons, landlord & tenant orders, warrants, etc.)