Christopher Streett, a lifelong Bel Air resident who had filed to run for the Board of Town Commissioners in the March 14 election, has withdrawn his application after a challenge was raised about the legality of holding two government jobs.
Mr. Streett, 38, is a sergeant and drug enforcement officer with the Baltimore Police Department. Under Article 35 of the Maryland Constitution, "No person shall hold, at the same time, more than one office of profit created by the Constitution or Laws of this State."
Shortly after filing for office Jan. 26, the 16-year police officer was informed by the town's legal counsel that there might be a problem with his candidacy.
He said he and his lawyer researched the law and sought advice from the state attorney general's office, which eventually issued an opinion concluding that he would indeed be violating state law if, as a police officer, he joined the five-member commission, even if he agreed not to accept the $1,200 annual salary.
The attorney general's office reportedly is planning to offer a proposed constitutional amendment during the General Assembly session to help prevent similar problems, since the issue has come up in both Baltimore and Harford County elections recently. If approved by the legislature, the amendment would go before Maryland voters in 1996.
"Sometimes you just have to face facts," Mr. Streett said last week. "But I definitely plan to try again if the law is changed."