Maryland’s Department of State Police has announced a search for a new State Fire Marshal.
Contenders for the position will head the Office of the State Fire Marshal, leading its operations and ensuring compliance with Maryland’s fire codes, according to a news release announcing the position.
“The candidate selected will replace retired State Fire Marshal Brian Geraci, who served in the position for more than 10 years before retiring on Jan. 1, 2024,” the department said.
Geraci, 66, retired after more than 50 years of working in fire departments, including a decade as head of the fire marshal’s office. Acting state fire marshal and Chief Deputy Jason M. Mowbray was appointed by Colonel Roland L. Butler, superintendent of the Maryland State Police, on Dec. 27.
“It has been an honor and privilege to have worked beside the finest men and women who have dedicated their lives to service for others,” Geraci said.
Applicants for the position are expected to apply by Feb. 3.
“Following his retirement, Geraci plans to relocate to Florida to spend quality time with his wife, Kelly, and their children and grandchildren,” according to a news release.
His last day with the agency was Dec. 31.
Geraci led nearly 70 employees, including 40 sworn fire marshals, since being appointed to the position in 2013.
The announcement comes months after a lawsuit filed against state police claiming racial discrimination inside the State Fire Marshal’s Office was allowed to move forward.
Deputy Chief Derek Chapman, Maryland’s first Black deputy chief state fire marshal, alleged there was a culture of racism in a February filing against the department.
Chapman also, in the early filing, revealed that he filed a harassment/discrimination complaint against Geraci and said several instances of “intimidation” and favoritism were on display.
“Geraci and other representatives of MDSP, have subjected Plaintiff to a pattern of discriminatory, disparate treatment that stands in stark contrast to the more favorable treatment received by similarly-situated Caucasian officers,” the complaint reads in part.
No additional court dates have been set in the case and the case was not listed as a reason for Geraci’s departure from the agency.
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