Circuit Court Judges

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. appointed two prosecutors yesterday to new judgeships in Baltimore Circuit Court. Stephanie L. Royster, a deputy state's attorney in Baltimore and Barry G. Williams, special litigation counsel at the U.S. Department of Justice, were chosen to fill spots that the General Assembly created last session. Royster, 44, and Williams, 45, will assume their judgeships within 30 days, said Marcella A. Holland, administrative judge of the Baltimore Circuit Court. The new judges will have two weeks of training and will serve until next fall, when they will be up for election to 15-year terms.

Early voting has begun and the official primary election in Harford County is Tuesday, April 3, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and there's a lot of talk about politics this season because it's a presidential election year. Those who vote in the Democratic and Republican primaries, however, will find their choices limited in races for U.S. Congress. Republicans have a solid slate in the contest to pick a presidential nominee, but there is no presidential race in the Democratic primary. More about these races presently.

Touting their broad experience and even temperaments, 15 lawyers have lined up with the hope of becoming Howard County's fifth Circuit Court judge.Two county District Court judges, a county public defender, a federal prosecutor and two assistant state attorneys general are among those on the list of judicial candidates released by the state Administrative Office of the Courts Friday."

The independent Judicial Compensation Commission recently reported its findings to the Maryland General Assembly - presented to the Senate and House of Delegates in the form of joint resolutions - regarding judge's salaries Our state's judges have not received a raise since 2006, and our Circuit Court Judges' pay, when ranked among that of their national peers and adjusted for cost of living, pathetically ranks 43rd in the nation. Just as we take understandable pride in the first-in-the-nation ranking of our state's educational system, we should be suitably embarrassed by that of our judicial compensation - embarrassed not simply by the aforementioned statistic itself, but also by what it says about our state's under-appreciation of what our judges do on a daily basis.  In order to attract new, qualified candidates to the bench, and to retain the judges currently serving, competitive judicial compensation is necessary and appropriate.

The great Federalists from Virginia and New York, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, didn't agree with the anti-Federalist views of Maryland's Jeremiah Chase on the organization of American government. However they all saw eye-to-eye on one matter: the selection of judges. The founders would likely be appalled at Maryland's judicial system today. It has degenerated into a partisan free-for-all, with impartial judges forced to raise campaign cash in ever-larger amounts while locking out the fastest-growing political group in the state: independents.

Diane O. Leasure was sworn in yesterday as the first woman to serve as a judge in Howard County's Circuit Court.Speaking before a crowd of supporters and members of the county's legal community at her swearing-in ceremony, Judge Leasure vowed to be impartial and said she is ready for the challenges ahead."

As people move into Carroll County, they bring with them all the civil and uncivil situations that can land on the courthouse docket.Carroll ranks first in the state in the number of residents for each of its three Circuit Court judges, according to a report to the General Assembly last month by Maryland's top judge, Chief Judge Robert M. Bell of the Court of Appeals.As a result of the county's growing population, lawsuits are getting trial dates into 2000, said Raymond E. Beck Sr., administrative judge of the Circuit Court.

ANNE ARUNDEL voters should pay special attention Tuesday to the election for four Circuit Court judgeships. Careless balloting could put an accountant with virtually no legal experience on the bench.The accountant is Daniel C. Conkling of Glen Burnie, and because his last name begins with a "C," it will be listed first of the five candidates for Circuit Court on the ballot, which is rather like a horse drawing the pole position at the Preakness by virtue of his name. History proves that voters who are undecided or uninformed when they enter the voting booth tend to pick the first name they see. This effect is especially pronounced in low-profile races such as contested judgeships.

An unorthodox alliance of liberals and conservatives came together yesterday to tell legislators not to tamper with Maryland's system of requiring appointed Circuit Court judges to stand for election in contested races. The long-dormant issue came to life briefly yesterday as the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee held a hearing on whether to change the system in the wake of the defeats of two African-American judges in the Baltimore suburbs in the last four years. By calling the hearing, committee Chairman Walter M. Baker opened up a box that had been closed in the General Assembly since 1988, when his committee rejected by one vote a House-backed bill to scrap contested judicial elections.

In 1991, after a distinguished 20-year career in the law, capped by a seven-year tour as deputy attorney general of Maryland, Dennis M. Sweeney was appointed to the Circuit Court in Howard County. His decision to apply for the job was a commendable one. Many attorneys with his qualifications are reluctant to become Circuit Court judges because such judges can be challenged in elections.For example, that year, typically, the number of applicants for each vacancy in the state's judiciary was lower for Circuit Court judgeships than for any of the other three levels.

George Bacon Rasin Jr., former Kent County Circuit Court judge who led a movement to modernize juvenile justice in Maryland, died of congestive heart failure Friday at the Edenwald Retirement Community in Towson. He was 94. "Judge Rasin was widely known and respected for his integrity, knowledge of the law and absolute fairness," said retired Baltimore County Circuit Court Judge John Fader, who was a friend. "He was a man who ran a very tight ship. " Born in Worton in Kent County, he was a 1937 graduate of Washington College and earned his law degree from the University of Maryland School of Law. After enlisting in the Army in September 1941, he was assigned as a special agent to the Counter-Intelligence Corps in the Division of Military Intelligence.

Gov. Martin O'Malley announced the appointment of seven new circuit court judges Wednesday, including a woman whose promotion makes her the first judge of Asian descent at that level. "The appointment of judges is one of the most important responsibilities of any chief executive," O'Malley said in a statement, describing his selections as "highly qualified, talented and diverse. " Two judges, including Jeannie J. Hong, were appointed for the city. Hong, who is one of two Asian Pacific-American judges in Maryland, has served at the District Court level in Baltimore for nine years, most recently as its judge in charge.

Felicia "Snoop" Pearson, the Baltimore actress who played a ruthless hitwoman on HBO's "The Wire," pleaded not guilty Tuesday morning to drug conspiracy charges and requested a trial by jury, tentatively set for Aug. 9. Pearson, who appeared in Baltimore Circuit Court dressed in an oversized black polo shirt and baggy jeans, declined to comment Tuesday, saying she would talk "as soon as the case is over with. " She's "letting the lawyers take care of the legal issues and she's doing what she needs to do professionally," her attorney, Benjamin Sutley, said after the arraignment.

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.

I love the Dickensian sound of it: the Orphans' Court. One hears the phrase delivered from the lips of Dame Judith Dench or Ian McKellen: "The Or- phans' Court. " It has existed in Maryland since 1777, and its name derives from London's Court for Widows and Orphans, where the children of deceased male landowners were considered orphans whose inheritance had to be protected. The Orphans' Court operates in Baltimore and all but two Maryland counties, and — news flash from the 18th Century!

Because of the way the election is set up for Circuit Court judges in Maryland, Tuesday's primary in Anne Arundel County could decide which two of the three candidates win the general election and 15-year terms on the bench. That has kept all three candidates campaigning during the hot summer in a contest overshadowed by the statewide governor's contest and higher-profile county races. Ronald Jarashow, 60, of Annapolis and Laura Kiessling, 46, of Edgewater are seeking to retain the judgeships to which they were appointed in January by Gov. Martin O'Malley.

How's this for a system to select circuit court judges who will preside and rule on virtually every significant legal matter that will arise in your community, including civil disputes involving businesses, nonprofits, private individuals and government operations? First, when a circuit court vacancy occurs, Maryland's highest elected official — the governor — reviews lists of recommended candidates vetted by judicial nominating committees, made up of lawyers and non-lawyers, in the county where the vacancy exists.