Title: Bennett v. Harford County

State: maryland

Issuer: Maryland Supreme Court

Document:

Circuit Court for Harford County 
Case No. C-12-CV-22-000857 
 
 
 
    IN THE SUPREME COURT 
Argued:  April 4, 2023 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 OF MARYLAND* 
 
No. 38 
 
September Term, 2022 
 
            ______________________________________ 
 
 
JACOB BENNETT 
 
V. 
 
HARFORD COUNTY, MARYLAND 
 
 ______________________________________   
  
 
Fader, C.J., 
Watts, 
Hotten, 
Booth, 
Biran, 
Gould, 
Eaves, 
 
JJ. 
______________________________________ 
 
PER CURIAM ORDER 
______________________________________ 
 
 
 
Filed: April 5, 2023 
 
 
* At the November 8, 2022 general election, the voters of Maryland ratified a constitutional 
amendment changing the name of the Court of Appeals of Maryland to the Supreme Court 
of Maryland.  The name change took effect on December 14, 2022.
Pursuant to the Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials 
Act (§§ 10-1601 et seq. of the State Government Article) this 
document is authentic. 
 
Gregory Hilton, Clerk 
2023-04-05 09:08-04:00
 
JACOB BENNETT 
 
v.  
 
HARFORD COUNTY, MARYLAND 
 
* 
 
* 
 
* 
 
* 
 
* 
 
* 
 
     IN THE 
 
     SUPREME COURT   
 
     OF MARYLAND 
 
     No. 38 
      
     September Term, 2022  
 
PER CURIAM ORDER 
Upon consideration of the filings by Jacob Bennett, the appellant, and Harford 
County, Maryland, the appellee, and oral argument conducted on April 4, 2023,  
Whereas, Mr. Bennett is a teacher in Harford County Public Schools and is in the 
employ of the Harford County Board of Education; and 
Whereas, in the 2022 General Election for Harford County Council Members, 
Mr. Bennett won election to serve as the Councilmember for District F; and  
Whereas, on December 9, 2022, Harford County brought suit in the Circuit Court 
for Harford County seeking a declaratory judgment that Mr. Bennett is not qualified to 
serve on the Harford County Council while employed as a teacher by the Harford County 
Board of Education and an injunction barring him from serving on the Council; and 
Whereas, on December 21, 2022, Mr. Bennett answered the County’s complaint, 
contending that he is not an employee of the County or of the State, but of the County 
Board of Education; and  
Whereas, on the same day, Mr. Bennett filed a counter-claim against the County, 
seeking injunctive relief enjoining the County from preventing him from being a member 
2 
 
of the County Council, a writ of mandamus requiring the County to onboard him, and 
declaratory relief establishing that § 207 of the Harford County Charter does not disqualify 
him from serving as a Member of the County Council by virtue of him working for the 
County Board of Education as a public school teacher; and 
Whereas, Section 207 of the Harford County Charter provides, in relevant part:  
“During the term of office, the Council member shall not hold any other office of profit or 
employment in the government of the State of Maryland, Harford County, or any 
municipality within Harford County”; and 
Whereas, on February 15, 2023, after a hearing, the circuit court ruled that Section 
207 and the doctrine of incompatible positions precluded Mr. Bennett from serving on the 
Harford County Council while employed as a teacher by the Harford County Board of 
Education.  On the same day, the circuit court entered a declaratory judgment and order in 
which it:  (1) declared that Section 207 “applies to public school teachers employed by the 
Harford County Board of Education”; (2) declared that Mr. Bennett, due to his employment 
with the Harford County Board of Education, “is not qualified to be a member of the 
Harford County Council”; (3) ordered Mr. Bennett to “cure his lack of qualification . . . by 
terminating his employment with the Harford County Board of Education”; and 
(4) enjoined Mr. Bennett from acting as a member of the Harford County Council “unless 
and until he cures his lack of qualification”; and 
Whereas, Mr. Bennett noted an appeal from the circuit court’s judgment and 
thereafter sought review in this Court by filing a petition for writ of certiorari, which this 
Court granted; and 
3 
 
Whereas, the parties jointly moved for expedited consideration of this matter, which 
this Court also granted; and  
Whereas, on April 4, 2023, this Court held oral argument, 
Now, therefore, for reasons to be stated later in an opinion to be filed, it is this 5th 
day of April, 2023, by the Supreme Court of Maryland, a majority of the Court concurring, 
ORDERED, that the Declaratory Judgment and Order issued by the Circuit Court 
for Harford County on February 15, 2023 is hereby REVERSED; and it is further  
ORDERED, that neither Section 207 of the Harford County Charter nor the doctrine 
of incompatible positions precludes Mr. Bennett from serving as a member of the Harford 
County Council while simultaneously being employed as a teacher by the Harford County 
Board of Education; and it is further 
ORDERED, that this case is remanded to the Circuit Court for Harford County for 
entry of: (1) a declaratory judgment that Mr. Bennett is qualified to serve as a member of 
the Harford County Council while simultaneously being employed as a teacher by the 
Harford County Board of Education; and (2) any injunctive relief that may be necessary 
and appropriate to implement and enforce that declaratory relief; and it is further 
ORDERED, that costs are to be paid by Harford County and the mandate is to issue 
forthwith. 
 
 
     /s/ Matthew J. Fader    
   
 Chief Justice