{"id":10289,"date":"2026-04-13T17:06:53","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T17:06:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/maryland-law-restricts-lyrics-in-criminal-cases\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T17:06:53","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T17:06:53","slug":"maryland-law-restricts-lyrics-in-criminal-cases","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/maryland-law-restricts-lyrics-in-criminal-cases\/","title":{"rendered":"Maryland Law Restricts Lyrics In\u00a0Criminal Cases"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\tMaryland passed legislation Thursday (April 9) to restrict when prosecutors can cite rap lyrics as criminal evidence against the artists who wrote them, becoming the third state to rein in the controversial practice.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Protecting Artists\u2019 Creative Expression (PACE) Act would allow prosecutors to use rap lyrics and other \u201ccreative expression\u201d only after a judge decides that it meets certain strict requirements \u2014 including that it was intended as a literal statement about the facts of the case.<\/p>\n

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\n\tThe law, which is expected to be signed by Gov. Wes Moore<\/strong>, is part of a broader effort to limit the tactic, which critics say stifles free speech and can sway juries by playing to racial bias. Young Thug and Lil Durk have both recently faced indictments that quoted their lyrics.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe passage of the PACE Act in Maryland marks an important victory for music creators,\u201d said Harvey Mason Jr.<\/strong>, CEO of the Recording Academy, in a statement Friday (April 10). \u201cSilencing any genre or form of artistic expression is an attack on creative freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tProsecutors have used rap lyrics for decades to win convictions against the people who wrote them. Critics have long complained about it, arguing it denies defendants \u2014 innocent or guilty \u2014 their right to a fair trial by treating rap music as a literal confession rather than art.<\/p>\n

\n\tBut courts around the country have largely upheld the practice, leading to the push for legislative change. In late 2020, the Maryland Supreme Court upheld a murder conviction against Lawrence Montague, at least partially based on a \u201cjailhouse rap\u201d in which prosecutors say he admitted to the crime.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn technical terms, the law would not ban the use of lyrics in criminal cases. Instead, it would require prosecutors to show by a \u201cpreponderance of evidence\u201d that the lyrics are worthwhile evidence. Before lyrics will be admitted, judges will be required to rule that the artist intended them as literal statements; that they refer to the facts of the case; and that they are relevant to a disputed fact in the case.<\/p>\n

\n\tThat echoes a similar law enacted in California in 2022, which created a so-called rebuttable presumption against the use of lyrics; Louisiana has also passed restrictions on creative expression as evidence. New York has come close, and a federal bill has been introduced several times in Congress.<\/p>\n

\n\tKevin Liles<\/strong>, a music industry veteran and the chairman of the Free Our Art group that pushed for the Maryland legislation, said in a statement Friday that he hoped other states would soon tackle what he called the \u201cgrowing weaponization of creative expression in courtrooms across America.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cAs a kid growing up in Baltimore, music found me and hip-hop saved my life,\u201d Liles said. \u201cWhen this bill is signed, we\u2019re turning our attention to New York State next, and we hope to have two bills passed this year.\u201d<\/p>\n


\"Billboard
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