Mary Ann Saar, secretary of corrections and public safety during the Ehrlich administration, received a prestigious award recently from the the American Correctional Association. The E.R. Cass Award is presented annually to "the individual(s) most dedicated to the field of corrections."  In 2003, Saar became Maryland's corrections secretary and a champion of prisoner re-entry reforms, attempting to change the culture of corrections and implement the RESTART program in all Maryland prisons. She was thwarted by a stubborn Democrat-dominated legislature that didn't appreciate (or felt upstaged by) a Republican administration's progressive approach to corrections reform. Martin O'Malley ridiculed RESTART (intensive counseling, education, drug treatment and job preparation for inmates) as he ran for governor and replaced Saar with Gary Maynard. Ironically, Maynard is quoted in the ACA announcement of Saar's award: "Saar has made lasting impressions everywhere she has gone. Her dedication and commitment to the field of corrections and to public safety has served as an inspiration to so many of her colleagues within the profession, this department and our association.  She is most deserving of this high honor.”
Probably most deserving of keeping her job in Maryland.
But that's politics.