Court Opinion

ID: 9637632
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 15:12:54.270527+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:09:58.094100
License: Public Domain

Eldridge, J.,

dissenting:

Maryland Code (1957, 1973 Repl. Vol.), Art. 26A, § 10 (a), provides for judicial review of decisions of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board only where the Attorney General or the Secretary of Public Safety and Correctional Services believes that the “award is improper.” The statute mandates that “There shall be no other judicial review of any decision made or action taken by the Board . . . .” Such *522language, in my view, does more than merely preclude judicial review under the Administrative Procedure Act, Code (1957, 1971 Repl. Vol.), Art. 41, § 255 (a). It prohibits judicial review whether by the Administrative Procedure Act, mandamus, certiorari, or otherwise.
With respect to the basis for the circuit court’s decision, I believe that where no constitutional right or issue of procedural due process is involved, and where no pre-existing personal or property right is present, the Legislature may constitutionally couple the award of a gratuity with a condition precluding judicial review. Therefore, I would reverse.