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Court Information Office Robert C. Murphy Courts of Appeal Building Annapolis, MD (410) 260-1488 For Immediate Release |
| CIRCUIT COURT FOR BALTIMORE CITY
REORGANIZES CRIMINAL DOCKET BALTIMORE (December 2, 2002) Judge Stuart R. Berger will relinquish his responsibilities as judge-in-charge of the Baltimore City circuit court criminal docket for health reasons. Judge John M. Glynn will take over the position starting January 6, 2003. In announcing the changes, which will allow Judge Berger to concentrate most of his time on trials, Administrative Judge Ellen M. Heller said she was also designating three judges to oversee specific aspects of the docket. Judge John Philip Miller will oversee the misdemeanor trial court, Judge Thomas E. Noel will coordinate drug treatment court and substance abuse programs, and Judge Lynn K. Stewart will oversee the processing of miscellaneous matters, including juvenile waivers and not- criminally-responsible waivers. "Judge Berger has done an outstanding job with the myriad responsibilities as judge-in- charge of the criminal docket as well as chair of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council. In a very short time," Judge Heller said, "he has reorganized the way we manage cases and made the circuit court much more efficient. "We now have a computerized system for receiving statistical information that has improved the management of the criminal docket. We have streamlined the process of handling motions to transfer cases to juvenile court. And Judge Berger has instituted a weekly review of older cases in order to reduce the backlog and reduce time to trial." These initiatives build on a differentiated case management system for scheduling cases, pretrial conferences, and a discovery court, all reforms implemented in the last two years, Judge Heller said. Judge Berger acknowledged the progress made to date and said, "I am particularly pleased at the strides we have made in bringing all parties in the criminal justice system to the table, a trend that I hope will continue." "The next step," Judge Heller said, "is to build on Judge Berger's accomplishments, and Judge Glynn is eminently qualified to do that. He is a capable and experienced jurist who has been on the bench for nine years. Moreover, his strong background in criminal law will be invaluable in this new assignment." Judge John Glynn has been an Associate Judge for Baltimore City's Circuit Court since February 2001. He handled civil and criminal dockets as a District Court judge for seven years. He has served as the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Statewide Judicial Conference. Before his appointment to the bench, the Baltimore native and Vietnam veteran was People's Counsel for nine years, representing the interests of residential and noncommercial users of utilities and regulated transportation services. Judge Glynn, who will also serve as chair of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, described the judge-in-charge assignment as one that is extremely important to Baltimore City and continued reform of the criminal justice system. "I look forward to building on Judge Berger's accomplishments," Judge Glynn said, "and working with all the members of the council, because a strong cooperative relationship among all the constituents of the justice system is essential as our caseload continues to grow." Judge Heller said that the other judges who are part of the newly formed team bring strong qualifications to the assignment. Judge Miller has served as both a District Court and circuit court judge and is knowledgeable about issues which surround the misdemeanor docket. Judge Noel has directed and coordinated all activities dealing with drug treatment in Baltimore, and Judge Stewart's many years of experience as a prosecutor will be invaluable in her assignment, Judge Heller said. # # # # # |