Marc Yamada
After Montgomery County’s police chief resigned amid findings of misconduct, term-limited County Executive Marc Elrich said the next nominee for police chief will come from the next county executive.
“I’m not going to try to appoint somebody when a new executive is coming in two months,” Elrich said during a media briefing Wednesday. “This is going to be something that they’re going to have to live with, so this should be an appointment which they play a significant role in.”
The candidates for county executive are Will Jawando (D) and Esther Wells (R).
Former MCPD Chief Marc Yamada resigned Friday. The announcement came a few hours before the county’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report stating that an executive at an unnamed police executive violated department policies and county code by being absent from work without taking leave and providing false information during an OIG investigation.
Yamada served as chief since 2024, when Elrich nominated him. Yamada was employed by MCPD for almost 40 years.
Assistant Chief Darren Francke is currently serving as acting police chief until a permanent replacement is named.
Elrich, a democrat, plans to transition from his second term as county executive rinto a county council at-large seat if elected in the Nov. 3 general election. In 2024, voters chose to limit the county executive position to two terms instead of the previous three, based on a ballot question.
What prompted the investigation?
After complaints were received through an OIG tip line, the investigation began. Complainants alleged that a police department executive and other MCPD officials went to a golf outing while “on the clock” and drank alcohol. The executive admitted to drinking two alcoholic beverages during a police foundation golf tournament, but said he was attending in a private capacity. But the executive did not formally take leave, which was the basis of some of the allegations. Overall, the OIG investigation cited five days where the police executive was absent from work without taking leave, including the day of the golf tournament.
The report also found that the executive provided false information during investigation interviews by claiming not to have chosen a relative, also employed by the county, to travel with them to an out-of-state work conference.
In addition, the police department executive directed that a county vehicle be given to an employee at the County Attorney’s Office without issuing guidelines for usage. The vehicle was subsequently used for personal matters by that county employee. The OIG released a report on vehicle misuse Sept. 11, which MCM reported on.
Elrich asked for Yamada’s resignation
Elrich requested Yamada’s resignation after the investigation concluded.
“Reaching my decision was unfortunately pretty straightforward,” Elrich said Wednesday. He said some issues raised in the investigation report could be seen as issues of judgment, but the lack of truth was troubling.
The OIG found that the executive was not truthful when denying choosing their county-employed relative to come with them to a conference. That is a violation of county code.
“What was problematic was the lack of truth in his testimony, or what he gave the Inspector General, and that’s in the county code, that’s a pretty serious line. It could have very, very serious consequences and I decided that was a line that was too far,” Elrich said.
