Howard County taps Maj. Terrence Benn, a former marine, as interim police chief

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball has appointed Maj. Terrence Benn, a former marine with nearly 20 years of law enforcement experience, to be acting police chief.

Benn, who currently serves as Howard’s deputy chief of special operations and who oversees the department’s community services division, will take over for Chief Gregory Der effective June 1. Der last month announced plans to retire by June in preparation for a move to Florida to be closer to his new grandchild. Ball also appointed Capt. Antonio Thomas as acting colonel.

Benn, who has worked as a police officer in Baltimore City and Atlanta, said his approach to law enforcement has been shaped by his master’s degree in divinity from Howard University.

Policing is a calling and a service that involves showing up for people in difficult moments of their lives, Benn said at a news conference Tuesday.

‘“This is what I believe and how I intend to lead,” he said.

Benn said the department’s priorities will include helping people with mental health issues and disabilities as well as young people.

“The highest return on public safety is prevention,” he said.

Benn’s appointment comes as the Howard County Police Department has faced criticism for the fatal shooting of Alex LaMorie, an autistic man who approached officers with a knife, and a fatal police-involved crash involving an unnamed juvenile driver.

Advocates have also called out the police department and its accountability board for not effectively addressing apparent racial disparities in county law enforcement.

Der said last month that his retirement was planned for some time and had no connection to “recent occurrences.”

He has led the department since 2022, when he became the first person of Asian descent to serve as police chief.

Der, who grew up in Howard County, began his law enforcement career in 1997 as a patrol officer and narcotics detective with the Easton Police Department in Talbot County. He joined Howard’s department in 1999 and served as a school resource officer, hostage negotiator, property crimes detective, and fire and explosives investigator before retiring in 2017.

Under his leadership, the department implemented a body-worn camera program, saw reductions in traffic and pedestrian fatalities, and expanded operations to include satellite locations at Green Valley Marketplace in Elkridge and inside the Mall in Columbia, the latter of which is expected to open this month.

This story will be updated.