ANNAPOLIS, Md. — A former Annapolis Police officer learned his fate in court Wednesday after being charged with misconduct in office.
Gwynne L. Tavel was sentenced to probation before judgment with three years of probation and 100 hours of community service, after having been accused of improperly investigating a sexual assault case.
Back in August of 2018 Tavel reportedly closed a rape investigation by falsely claiming the victim was being “uncooperative," despite her repeated attempts to contact him by phone.
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Tavel was initially charged by the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office in 2021, but a judge later threw out the charges on grounds that investigators violated his Fifth Amendment rights.
The court at the time determined that Tavel's statement to internal affairs may not have been voluntary, and thus ran afoul of his constitutional protections against self-incrimination.
That's when the Office of the State Prosecutor took over and recharged Tavel leading to a guilty plea.
“The Office of the State Prosecutor is committed to ensuring that citizens receive fair and professional treatment by police officers tasked to investigate crimes, especially those as sensitive as sexual assault allegations,” said Maryland State Prosecutor Charlton T. Howard III. “Cases like these require complex legal and investigative efforts and I’m proud of our team’s work to achieve this result.”
