What started as a neighborhood fight over gas meter boxes on historic rowhouses has now landed in court, with three Federal Hill residents suing Baltimore Gas & Electric and accusing the utility of setting off a chain of wrongful arrests.
The women filed a civil lawsuit Monday claiming BGE “instigated” their 2023 arrests during a protest over the company’s push to install exterior gas regulators. Announced at a press conference led by former Maryland Deputy Attorney General Thiru Vignarajah, the complaint says BGE fed police false information that led to the women being detained. They were restrained, held overnight, and later saw all criminal charges dropped; the suit seeks damages and other relief for what the plaintiffs describe as false imprisonment.
Vignarajah told reporters the case centers on what happened on June 22, 2023, when BGE allegedly moved to cut off gas service to neighbors who refused exterior regulators and then called in the police. According to WBFF, the lawsuit leans on body‑worn camera footage and court records that the plaintiffs say show BGE representatives telling officers the company had already given legally required notice and held permits authorizing the work.
Regulators Backed Homeowners
Months after the clash on the block, state regulators weighed in on the underlying policy fight and sided with customers who did not want the exterior devices. The Maryland Public Service Commission rejected BGE’s claim that its tariff allowed the utility to terminate gas service solely because a customer declined an exterior regulator, and it ordered the company to let customers choose interior or exterior installations. As outlined by the Maryland Public Service Commission, the ruling also told BGE to give affected customers at least 14 days’ notice and to file tariff revisions reflecting that choice.
How the 2023 Street Standoff Unfolded
On the day in question, neighbors in Federal Hill physically blocked BGE crews on the 400 block of Warren Avenue as tempers flared over the regulator installation program. Police eventually arrested three women after several warnings, charging them with interfering with a public utility and related counts. The Baltimore Banner reported the protesters were taken to Central Booking and held overnight, and CBS Baltimore noted that Baltimore prosecutors later dropped the charges in August 2023. Court filings and contemporaneous coverage show a judge ordered BGE to restore service to customers whose gas had been cut after the arrests.
The Lawsuit’s Playbook and What Comes Next
The complaint hangs on a false‑imprisonment theory that says a private company can be held liable if it “instigates” a wrongful arrest by supplying officers with false or misleading information, a point the filing links to Maryland case law. Vignarajah said the lawsuit is trained on BGE, not the Baltimore Police Department, and that the plaintiffs intend to press their claims in Baltimore Circuit Court, according to WBFF.
BGE, for its part, has consistently framed the exterior regulator program as a safety and reliability upgrade and, in prior coverage, said crews stopped work when the situation became unsafe for contractors, according to reporting by The Baltimore Banner. For now, the dispute shifts from the sidewalk to the courtroom, where the plaintiffs’ legal team says it will pursue both damages and injunctive relief as the case moves forward.
