Circuit Court Judges

Ten lawyers, including the county's state's attorney and a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, have applied for a vacancy on the Harford County Circuit Court. The 10 applicants to replace recently retired Judge Emory A. Plitt Jr. are: • Joseph Ignatius Cassilly, Harford County State's Attorney since 1983; • Michael Gerard Comeau, a senor assistant attorney in the Harford County Law Department and a former state delegate; • Yolanda Lauranzon Curtin, a state administrative law judge and former Harford prosecutor; • Michael Hugh Andrew Daney, associate zoning hearing examiner for Harford County; • Howard Wayne Norman Jr., a member of the House of Delegates representing Northern Harford; • Steven J. Scheinin, a lawyer in private practice and previous judge applicant and candidate; • District Court Judge Victor Kuras Butanis, a district judge since 1996; • Melissa Lazarich Lambert, chief legal counsel to the Harford County Council and a former assistant state's attorney; • Kerwin Anthony Miller Sr., deputy state's attorney for Cecil County; • Diane Adkins Tobin, deputy state's attorney for Harford County.

Ten lawyers, including the county's state's attorney and a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, have applied for the vacancy on the Harford County Circuit Court. In addition, 20 lawyers have applied for the vacancy on the county's District Court bench, with six applying for both. The 10 applicants to replace recently retired Circuit Judge Emory A. Plitt Jr. are: • Joseph Ignatius Cassilly, Harford County State's Attorney since 1983; • Michael Gerard Comeau, a senior assistant attorney in the Harford County Law Department and a former state delegate; • Yolanda Lauranzon Curtin, a state administrative law judge and former Harford prosecutor; • Michael Hugh Andrew Daney, associate zoning hearing examiner for Harford County; • Howard Wayne Norman Jr., a member of the House of Delegates representing Northern Harford; • Steven J. Scheinin, a lawyer in private practice and previous judge applicant and candidate; • District Court Judge Victor Kuras Butanis, a district judge since 1996; • Melissa Lazarich Lambert, chief legal counsel to the Harford County Council and a former assistant state's attorney; • Kerwin Anthony Miller Sr., a deputy state's attorney for Cecil County; • Diane Adkins Tobin, a deputy state's attorney for Harford County.

Gov. Martin O'Malley appointed eight Circuit Court judges yesterday, including Angela M. Eaves, the first African-American and first woman to fill the post in Harford County. Eaves, 48, a District Court judge for seven years, will replace retiring Circuit Judge Maurice W. Baldwin Jr. "I do think I've made history and broken barriers, but that depends on a person's perspective," said Eaves, a former assistant attorney general and attorney for the Legal Aid Bureau of Harford County. "The bench should represent [the]

Ten lawyers, including the county's state's attorney and a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, have applied for a vacancy on the Harford County Circuit Court. The 10 applicants to replace recently retired Judge Emory A. Plitt Jr. are: • Joseph Ignatius Cassilly, Harford County State's Attorney since 1983; • Michael Gerard Comeau, a senor assistant attorney in the Harford County Law Department and a former state delegate; • Yolanda Lauranzon Curtin, a state administrative law judge and former Harford prosecutor; • Michael Hugh Andrew Daney, associate zoning hearing examiner for Harford County; • Howard Wayne Norman Jr., a member of the House of Delegates representing Northern Harford; • Steven J. Scheinin, a lawyer in private practice and previous judge applicant and candidate; • District Court Judge Victor Kuras Butanis, a district judge since 1996; • Melissa Lazarich Lambert, chief legal counsel to the Harford County Council and a former assistant state's attorney; • Kerwin Anthony Miller Sr., deputy state's attorney for Cecil County; • Diane Adkins Tobin, deputy state's attorney for Harford County.

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.

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."

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.

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."

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.

Judge Elsbeth Levy Bothe, a well-known former criminal defense attorney who served on the Baltimore Circuit Court for nearly two decades and had a taste for the macabre, died Wednesday at her Homeland residence of complications from a stroke she had suffered three weeks earlier. Judge Bothe was 85. "Elsbeth was always there for justice. She was fair, just, but could be very tough," said Ellen A. Callegary, who clerked for Judge Bothe in 1976 and was a founding partner of the Baltimore law firm of Callegary & Steedman.

Michael E. Loney, a retired Anne Arundel County Circuit Court judge recalled for his moderate temperament, died of congestive heart failure Oct. 5 at his Arnold home. He was 73. "He was a gentleman and a gentle man," said a friend, Judge Nancy Davis-Loomis, administrative judge of the Anne Arundel County Circuit Court. "He loved the law, and he loved helping people in his private life and on the bench. He was always fair and always of moderate temperament. " Judge Davis-Loomis said, "He was the kind of judge you hope you get. " Born in Baltimore and raised on Monastery Avenue in Irvington, he was the son of a homemaker and a hardware salesman.

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.

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.

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.

Ten lawyers, including the county's state's attorney and a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, have applied for the vacancy on the Harford County Circuit Court. In addition, 20 lawyers have applied for the vacancy on the county's District Court bench, with six applying for both. The 10 applicants to replace recently retired Circuit Judge Emory A. Plitt Jr. are: • Joseph Ignatius Cassilly, Harford County State's Attorney since 1983; • Michael Gerard Comeau, a senior assistant attorney in the Harford County Law Department and a former state delegate; • Yolanda Lauranzon Curtin, a state administrative law judge and former Harford prosecutor; • Michael Hugh Andrew Daney, associate zoning hearing examiner for Harford County; • Howard Wayne Norman Jr., a member of the House of Delegates representing Northern Harford; • Steven J. Scheinin, a lawyer in private practice and previous judge applicant and candidate; • District Court Judge Victor Kuras Butanis, a district judge since 1996; • Melissa Lazarich Lambert, chief legal counsel to the Harford County Council and a former assistant state's attorney; • Kerwin Anthony Miller Sr., a deputy state's attorney for Cecil County; • Diane Adkins Tobin, a deputy state's attorney for Harford County.

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.