ANNAPOLIS, MD—On Tuesday, Governor Wes Moore swore in Lieutenant Colonel Roland L. Butler, Jr. as the Superintendent of the Maryland State Police. Governor Moore was joined by Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller, Secretary of State Susan Lee, House Speaker Adrienne Jones, and Senate President Bill Ferguson for the ceremony.

“Superintendent Butler is the best person to move the Maryland Department of State Police forward. He brings exemplary service to this role, with a career spanning three decades,” said Gov. Moore. “I am confident that Superintendent Butler will work in partnership to execute his vision and reform the department, by increasing morale, by building trust, and by recruiting and retaining the best and brightest our state has to offer: always with an eye toward equity – always with an eye toward fairness – and always with an eye toward transparency.”

Superintendent Butler has nearly 30 years of experience in law enforcement, including as Chief of the Maryland State Police Field Operations Bureau, where he led a patrol force of more than 1,000 troopers and investigative personnel assigned to 23 barracks.

During his career, Superintendent Butler served in both line and supervisory positions as he was promoted through the ranks, rising to become the sixth African-American lieutenant colonel in the 102-year history of the Maryland State Police. He has ​served on the superintendent’s staff in the Maryland State Police Support Services Bureau Office of Equity ​and Inclusion, and ​in other positions throughout ​the Field Operations Bureau.