Baltimore County judge suspended for profane, discourteous comments

Baltimore Sun

May 13, 2008

The state's highest court today ordered the suspension of a Baltimore County judge for profane and discourteous comments that violated Maryland's judicial code of conduct.

The Court of Appeals accepted a judicial commission's recommendation that Baltimore County District Judge Bruce S. Lamdin be suspended for 30 days without pay.

In a 24-page opinion, the court said the judge's conduct -- which included disparaging remarks about drug treatment programs and the Baltimore City criminal justice system, a joke that the county's Circuit Court judges spend their afternoons sipping cocktails rather than working, and profanity not typically heard from the bench -- 'was prejudicial to the administration of justice, manifested bias toward many groups, and lacked dignity, courtesy, and patience.'

The court added: 'Even if the comments were delivered in a joking manner, it is difficult to imagine a context in which such remarks would be appropriate or consistent with behavior that promotes public confidence in the impartiality and integrity of the Judiciary.'

The investigation into Lamdin's conduct began in November 2005, when a Reisterstown man filed a formal complaint about the judge's handling of traffic cases. After receiving the complaint, the Maryland Commission on Judicial Disabilities ordered audio recordings of several weeks' worth of hearings from Lamdin's courtroom.

The commission charged Lamdin with 20 instances of sanctionable conduct between September 2005 and May 2006, although the panel's lawyer dropped six of those charges after the judge agreed that his comments in the remaining cases violated the code of judicial conduct.

The commission recommended in August that he be suspended without pay for 30 days -- one of the toughest sanctions the panel has suggested in years.

In October, the Court of Appeals conducted a hearing on the matter. The session was described as the first of its type since 1984, when the high court removed a judge from office for forging court documents.

As a sanction, Lamdin's attorneys recommended a reprimand and the surrender of 15 vacation days, or that he be required for a period to surrender only his net pay, which would preserve his employment benefits, according to today's opinion. The attorneys' pointed to the lack of prior disciplinary action against him during his more than five years on the bench, his expressions of remorse, reform efforts that included seeking out mentors, the humiliation he has suffered and the potential burden on the District Court that could come with his suspension.

The Court of Appeals found that 'neither a reprimand nor removal from office are warranted.' Lamdin's suspension is to begin Monday.

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