ST. MARY’S COUNTY, Md. — HB0864 passed the House of Delegates last February. The new bill would add a fourth Circuit Court judge to St. Mary’s County, as more jury trials have been necessary in recent years, adding to the court’s workload and slowing down the legal system.
Judge Michael Stamm passed away in 2024, leaving a gap in the court. Three delegates, Brian Crosby, Matthew Morgan and Todd B. Morgan, sponsored HB0864 to help fill the need for a fourth judge.
Gov. Wes Moore is set to pick a replacement for Judge Stamm later this year, but filling his role won’t be enough to deal with the high caseload in St. Mary’s County. Like with Stamm’s replacement, the governor will probably appoint the fourth judge should the new bill be enacted.
Currently, County Administrative Judge Joseph M. Stanalonis and Associate Judge Amy Lorenzini are the only two permanent Circuit Court judges in St. Mary’s County. The addition of two new judges could significantly speed up the backlog of jury trials.
Commissioner Michael Hewitt of St. Mary’s County has expressed his skepticism of HB0864, explaining that the county budget could be heavily affected by the extra expense. Jury trials are typically scheduled a year out or even later, so proponents argue that an additional hand was needed even before Stamm’s passing.
During a CSMC budget work session on March 4, representatives explained how the process of adding a fourth judge might work:
“If the legislature approves the fourth judge, it would be advertised like this one (Judge Stamm’s replacement) was. There would be a deadline for people to apply for that position, and then it would go through the same process as the current third judge is going through.”
Commissioner Hewitt then explored the idea of funding it for a single year, or even less, and then reassessing it in 2026.
“We have this fund balance, now it’s going to be recurring once the judge gets there, but we don’t know when that starts. I’d say we don’t fund it until we know. Fund it for the first year, or part of a year, then take care of it in next year’s budget. Then we’ll have experience as to how much it’s going to cost us.”
Many in St. Mary’s County have argued that more resources and staff are necessary to successfully handle the increasing number of cases. Though Judge Stamm’s passing did impact this problem, a fourth judge has been necessary to increase the legal system’s speed since before he passed away.
HB0864’s current status is “In the Senate – First Reading Judicial Proceedings.” To learn more about the latest bill, visit the HB0864 webpage.
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“the county budget could be heavily affected by the extra expense” Just use the money you pocket from all the low income neighborhoods you approved. More crime, more traffic, less beautiful St. Marys.
He only approves them in Lexington Park, he downright said in no uncertain terms he doesn’t want poor or working people in California because he denied the workforce apartments for first colony. Maybe they didn’t leave enough on the stump.
the voters should have the courage to put someone 55+ in office. The judges don’t serve a full term (15 years), if they are over 55 when they get into office (because of mandatory retirement). Its ok to think that 15 years is too long for a judge to do. Its ok to think that the Governors appointment is not a sufficient reason to stay on the bench. Oh my, the unchallenged appeals court.
the election is a back up way of getting into office if the judge is not selected by the governor by appointment.