Chief Judge

Maryland's highest-ranking judge, Robert M. Bell, likes that his courthouse is dedicated to his predecessor, pointing out that the letters etching Robert C. Murphy's name on the building's exterior are filled in gold paint to make sure even nighttime drivers can see it. As Bell approaches retirement, mandatory when he turns 70 in July, he scoffs at the notion that his name might someday grace a building as well. But then, his name is forever etched in legal history by virtue of the Supreme Court case Bell v. Maryland.

In addition to holding the position of chief judge on the Maryland Court of Appeals, Robert M. Bell is the representative for the Baltimore City circuit. Applications for the city seat are due May 1, and those who apply will be interviewed by bar groups and a judicial nominating commission. The commission will meet June 24 to produce a list of qualified applicants to be forwarded to Gov. Martin O'Malley. His appointment must be confirmed by the Maryland Senate. O'Malley will also appoint a chief judge of the Court of Appeals.

Baltimore Judge Martin P. Welch, who's served on the city's circuit court for 18 years, has become the new chief judge, replacing John N. Prevas, who died of a heart attack Monday. The title is bestowed on the most senior judge, who then presides over judicial ceremonies and signs official correspondence, including summonses. It doesn't come with a salary increase — just prestige. Welch, who was named to the post Tuesday, is thought to be the city's second black chief judge, behind Clifton J. Gordy, who briefly held the post in 2006 before retiring.

Maryland's highest-ranking judge, Robert M. Bell, likes that his courthouse is dedicated to his predecessor, pointing out that the letters etching Robert C. Murphy's name on the building's exterior are filled in gold paint to make sure even nighttime drivers can see it. As Bell approaches retirement, mandatory when he turns 70 in July, he scoffs at the notion that his name might someday grace a building as well. But then, his name is forever etched in legal history by virtue of the Supreme Court case Bell v. Maryland.

Judge John Prevas loved the music of rockers Steely Dan and sang most Wednesdays at Southeast Baltimore karaoke bars. He was recalled Tuesday as an old-school, tough jurist who knew his law inside and out and could also argue baseball trivia with the best. Judge Prevas, the chief judge of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, died of a heart attack Monday night at Mercy Medical Center. He was 63. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski called the judge "a friend, an adviser," adding that "Baltimore has lost a truly great man. " Born in Baltimore, he was the son of an attorney, Konstantine "Gus" Prevas, who survives him and lives in Baltimore.

Judge Alexander Harvey 2nd plans to step down March 8 as chief judge of the U.S. District Court in Baltimore and become a senior judge.His successor, Judge Walter E. Black Jr., 64, is to be sworn in as chief judge in a ceremony that day.Harvey, 67, has been chief judge for five years. He has been on the federal bench for more than 25 years after being originally appointed by President Johnson.Harvey could have retained the chief judgeship until his 70th birthday. But he said yesterday relinquishing the post to become a senior judge would open another full-time judgeship on the busy district bench, something he feels is needed with the pending construction of the so-called "southern district" wing of the court in the Washington suburbs.

Hall Hammond, a dominant figure in the Maryland judicial system for decades before his retirement as the state's chief judge in 1972, died early yesterday of cancer at his home in the Ruxton Village Apartments. He was 89.Described yesterday by one former associate as a "titan" and "one of the shining lights" of his profession, Judge Hammond served on the state Court of Appeals for 20 years, the last six as chief judge.Judge Hammond had served as Maryland attorney general from 1946 until being named to the state's highest court in 1952.

Ailene W. Hutchins, a former educator and Orphans' Court judge who wrote widely about her native Calvert County, died in her sleep June 23 at her home in Prince Frederick. She was 86. Ailene Williams was born and raised on her family's farm near Barstow, and graduated from Calvert County High School. At 19, she earned a bachelor's degree in 1939 from Western Maryland College, now McDaniel College. She taught French, English and drama at Calvert County High, and was the school's guidance counselor from 1951 to 1963.

Chief Judge Bell honored for efforts on conflict resolution Maryland's chief judge, Robert M. Bell, will receive an award this month from the American Bar Association for "advancing the appropriate use of mediation and other non-adversarial forms of conflict resolution in the court system and in the wider community," the ABA said yesterday. The award will be presented March 21 in San Antonio. Bell created a commission in 1998 and then a state office to take nonconfrontational methods of conflict resolution to courts, schools and communities.

Michael Waring Lee, chief judge of Baltimore City Orphans' Court, died Sunday of complications after colon surgery at St. Joseph Medical Center. The Northwest Baltimore resident was 42.Judge Lee was a great-nephew of Everett J. Waring, who in 1885 became the first black admitted to the Maryland Bar.Judge Lee also made history -- as the first black to be appointed a chief judge of any court in Maryland. In 1983, he was 30 years old when Gov. Harry R. Hughes selected him to fill a vacancy on the three-member Orphans' Court.

Roland Walker, a colorful and highly regarded defense attorney who was a fixture in Baltimore courtrooms for six decades, died Saturday of complications from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, at his Lutherville home. He was 82. "Roland was always a person's lawyer. He represented people, not organizations or institutions, and he did it brilliantly," said Joseph F. Murphy Jr., former chief judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals. "He did mainly criminal defense work and always had a wonderful way with people, judges and jurors.

I read with great interest your article Jan. 31 about Laurel's first bank robbery by John Morgan. Sadly, this was not our last bank robbery and just as sadly, not the last 19-year-old to go to prison from our county. A quick review by the state archivist, Dr. Edwin Papenfuse, brings us the "rest of the story. " (By the way, if every part of government was as efficient or accommodating as the state archives, there would not be much to complain about.) The Hon. Chief Judge John P. Briscoe of our Circuit Court sentenced Morgan to five years in the state penitentiary, notwithstanding the recommendation for leniency by the bank president, Charles H. Stanley Sr. Several months later, Morgan's sister Gertrude, who was a nurse at St. Joseph's Hospital, applied to the governor to pardon her brother.

E.R. Shipp's commentary on Morgan State University's growth as well as reminders of what happened in and around Morgan is much appreciated, especially by one who was witness to Morgan's growth in the 1950s and 1960s ("Moving on by moving up," Dec. 5). I taught history at Morgan from 1955 until 1967, and one thing I think was missing from the article is giving credit to the remarkable leaders who were responsible for Morgan's growth and increasing reputation. Among those who need to be mentioned are Morgan's president, Martin D. Jenkins, the nationally-recognized author and historian Benjamin Quarles, and the nationally-recognized collector of African art James E. Lewis.

More than 70,000 Maryland women become victims of domestic violence each year, but only a fraction of these women seek protective orders from our state's courts. If we want to do more to protect women, we need to make it easier and safer for them to get such orders. Alarmingly, sometimes women actually put themselves at risk just by going to court. Consider the case of a Montgomery County resident whose estranged boyfriend had repeatedly beaten and threatened her. When this woman finished her court hearing and had received her protective order, she began walking to her car alone.

A lawsuit challenging both the Maryland Court of Appeals ruling that pit bulls are "inherently dangerous" and a Baltimore landlord's decision to ban the animals from its property to avoid liabilities created under the ruling was recently amended to include the state's governor, attorney general and chief appeals judge as defendants. Gov. Martin O'Malley, Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler and Chief Judge Robert M. Bell are all being sued personally but within their official capacities, according to the amended complaint, which was filed Sunday night.

Suzanne K. Mensh, who served Baltimore County for nearly five decades as an Orphans' Court judge and then as clerk of the county Circuit Court, died Wednesday at Northwest Hospital. Her family said no cause of death was given. She was 82. "She was a sincere lady," said a son, Spencer Mensh of Reisterstown. "The first word that comes to mind with her is 'integrity.'" Judge Mensh was encouraged to run for office by members of a local Democratic club who worked with her at polling locations, her son said.

Rosa Lee Bell, the mother of Maryland's chief judge, died Tuesday of a circulatory ailment at her home in Brooklyn, N.Y. She was 84 and formerly resided in East Baltimore. She was born Rosa Lee Jordan in Enfield, N.C., the oldest girl in a family of 11 children. Her parents were sharecroppers. "When the crop had to be gotten out, she was not in school. At best, she completed the third grade. Later in life, she taught herself to read and got an eighth-grade equivalency certificate," said her son, Chief Judge Robert M. Bell of the Maryland Court of Appeals.

Suzanne K. Mensh, who ran Baltimore County's orphans' court for two decades and served as Circuit Court clerk for six terms, died Wednesday at Northwest Hospital. Her family said no cause of death was given. Mensh, 82, had been admitted to the hospital four days earlier because of her deteriorating physical condition, said a son, Spencer Mensh of Reisterstown. "She loved, heart and soul, what she did," he said by phone Friday. Mensh served as the clerk of the Baltimore County Circuit Court from 1986 until May 2010.

WEATHER Today's forecast calls for sunny skies, with a high temperature near 78 degrees. It is expected to be clear tonight, with a low temperature around 50 degrees. TRAFFIC Check our traffic updates for this morning's issues as you plan your commute. FROM LAST NIGHT... Baltimore County unions oppose Kamenetz pension bill : Public-employee unions are urging Baltimore County Council members to reject a proposal by County Executive Kevin Kamenetz that would cut pension benefits for some workers, saying it sends a bad message to labor leaders and undermines negotiations.