District Judge

Judge Donald M. Smith, one of only three jurists to sit on the state's District Court since its inception 24 years ago, is expected to retire May 1 from the Carroll seat he has held since 1971.His retirement will create the county's first judicial opening since 1990, when then-Circuit Judge Donald J. Gilmore retired and District Judge Francis M. Arnold was elevated to fill the vacancy.District Judge Joann Ellinghaus-Jones was appointed to fill Judge Arnold's spot in 1991.Judge Robert F. Sweeney, the chief judge of Maryland's District Court, said Judge Smith notified him of his plans several weeks ago. It was not clear yesterday when Gov. Parris N. Glendening would name a successor.

Howard County District Judge R. Russell Sadler plans to retire in October, a move that may stir again the fractious issue of bringing more diversity to the Howard County bench.In an interview yesterday, Sadler said that when he turns 70 -- the mandatory retirement age under state law -- he will step down from the post he has held since 1980.There has never been a black district judge in Howard, and three of the four current judges are men.As a result, some Howard County political observers predict that Gov. Parris N. Glendening's vow to open doors for women and minorities on the state's traditionally male-dominated benches will play a role in his choice of Sadler's successor.

Three county attorneys, a district judge and the Juvenile Court master are hoping to fill the vacant spot on the Carroll Circuit Court created by the September retirement of Judge Donald J. Gilmore.Attorneys James A. Gede, Charles M. Preston and Marc G. Rasinsky, Administrative District Judge Francis M. Arnold and Juvenile Master Peter M. Tabatsko have submitted applications for the second vacancy on the circuit bench in little more than a year.From the pool of five applicants, a gubernatorial judicial nominating commission will select a group of candidates for the $89,000-a-year job, then forward their names to Gov. William Donald Schaefer.

The 11 applicants for the new Howard County District Court judgeship have many similarities - all have been practicing attorneys for at least 12 years, many have worked for the state's attorney's office, nine have applied to become a district judge before, and all recognize that the county's courts are overloaded.They welcome the judgeship designed to deal with that problem, even if they disagree about who should fill it."The backlog [of cases] is incredible," said one appilcant, Pamila Junette Brown, who has been counsel to the state Department of General Services since 1990.

WESTMINSTER - For the third time in two years, Carroll County is searching for a judge.Gov. William Donald Schaefer named Carroll District Judge Francis M.Arnold to the Circuit Court on Saturday, creating a vacancy on the district bench.Arnold, 61, will fill the seat opened by the September retirement of Judge Donald J. Gilmore.A similar search was conducted last year, when the General Assembly created a third seat on the Carroll Circuit Court. That seat was filled by former state Sen. Raymond E. Beck.

Notice: Threatening and assaulting judges and witnesses in Baltimore County courtrooms will not be taken lightly, as two Baltimore men -- who did just that this year -- found out yesterday.In one case, a Brooklyn man was given a three-year sentence for shouting threats at a county circuit judge in April. In another, a Baltimore man who punched his former girlfriend in an Essex courtroom in August was convicted of assault and could be sentenced to a decade in prison."These are not run-of-the-mill cases, I'll tell you that," said Assistant State's Attorney Andrew I. Alperstein, who prosecuted the first case and helped on the other.

Catherine Curran O'Malley, the wife of Baltimore's mayor and daughter of the state attorney general, was one of eight people recommended to Gov. Parris N. Glendening yesterday for appointment to a judgeship in the city's District Court. O'Malley was tapped by the city's Judicial Nominating Commission, made up of seven lawyers and six lay people, after the commission met Tuesday. Her name, along with seven others, was presented to Glendening yesterday for him to make a selection to fill the $101,800-a-year post.

Does anyone else find it hard to believe that this is 1991 and Carroll County does not have a female judge?Not on the Circuit Court bench. Not on the District Court bench.Are none of the female lawyers in the county qualified to become a jurist?Hardly.Are none of them interested in administering justice?Hard to believe.But the fact is that until last month, no female attorneys had submitted their names for vacancies on either of Carroll's benches. And, certainly, they've had several opportunities in recent years:* In 1989, a third circuit judgeship was created.

Maryland Chief District Judge Martha F. Rasin announced yesterday that she would quit the position and return to Anne Arundel County as a trial judge next month, ending a five-year tenure marked by progress in domestic violence cases and high-profile political clashes over staffing and court reform. Rasin, 53, said her job overseeing 35 courthouses, 108 judges and 1,500 employees has isolated her from the work she loves. "I entered the judiciary to be a trial judge on the District Court, and that is a wonderful, wonderful job," Rasin said yesterday.

Senior U.S. District Judge Frank A. Kaufman, who helped craft the 1954 deal that brought the Orioles to Baltimore and went on to become a champion of the underdog in his federal courtroom, died yesterday from a rare blood disease. He was 81.Standing 6 feet 3 inches and weighing more than 200 pounds, Judge Kaufman was a towering figure in the federal courthouse in Baltimore. He was considered one of the brightest and most intense judges on the bench, constantly agonizing over legal questions while working 16 to 18 hours a day."