Legal Question in Criminal Law in Maryland

Re: What happens when the State runs out of town?

There is no general "30 day" rule. Different types of discovery require different time limits. For example, in a drug case, the State must provide the chemical analysis to the Defendant (if requested) within 10 days of the trial date. In general, however, if you request discovery and make a reasonable effort to obtain it from the State, you have a good argument to either have the case dismissed or the evidence excluded (assuming they do not provide anything to you). Much of this is up to the trial judge and depends on which judge you have.