Law Degree

Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley on Thursday named District Judge Dana Moylan Wright to be the first woman to serve on Washington County Circuit Court. Wright, 46, was one of five people whose names were forwarded to the governor by the Judicial Nominating Commission in May. Eleven attorneys originally applied for the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge W. Kennedy Boone III, who reached the mandatory retirement age of 70 in March. “I'm very excited and honored to continue serving the citizens of the county,” Wright said Thursday night.

Maj. Sam Billotti of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office is qualified to be a lawyer, but Maryland won’t let him do both jobs at once. Billotti has a law degree and has been admitted to the Maryland bar. However, state law prohibits sheriffs and deputy sheriffs, among others, from practicing law. A bill pending in the Maryland General Assembly seeks to help Billotti and others like him. It would let a sheriff or deputy sheriff work...

laurae@herald-mail.com Sen. Alex X. Mooney failed in his attempt to block an openly gay woman from being confirmed to the Baltimore City District Court bench. The Maryland Senate voted 38-4 Tuesday to approve Judge Halee F. Weinstein. Mooney, R-Frederick/Washington, argued on the Senate floor that Weinstein lied on her application for military service in order to serve in the U.S. Army in the 1980s. Without mentioning that Weinstein is gay, Mooney gave senators a copy of a blank military form used before President Clinton's don't-ask-don't-tell policy.

WASHINGTON COUNTY -- Washington County Circuit Judge Daniel Patrick Dwyer has filed to run in this year's election. Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley appointed Dwyer to the bench in March 2009, filling a vacancy created when Frederick C. Wright III turned 70, the state's mandatory retirement age. In Maryland, someone appointed to be a Circuit judge must appear on the ballot in the next election that's at least one year after the vacancy was...

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The Berkeley County Republican Club will meet on Thursday, Aug. 13, at Hoss's Restaurant on Edwin Miller Boulevard, Martinsburg. An optional dinner begins at 6 p.m. and the meeting begins at 7:15 p.m. State GOP Executive Committee Chairman David Tyson will be the speaker. He is a managing partner in Tyson & Tyson. Tyson graduated from West Virginia University and the California Western School of Law. He received his law degree in 1980. Tyson has been active in West Virginia politics for several years, including serving as special deputy attorney general.

Date of birth : April 5, 1943 Hometown : Boyds, Md. Education : attended U.S. Military Academy from 1960 to 1963; received bachelor's degree in engineering from Case Institute of Technology (now Case Western Reserve University) in 1965; attended University of Pennsylvania Law School for two years; received law degree from University of Baltimore Law School in 1969; received master's degree in public administration from American University in 1970 Occupation : attorney and real estate agent Party affiliation : Republican since 1976 (previously was a Democrat, then independent)

Sandra Kae Stottlemyer and Thomas Scott Miller were married Aug. 16, 2008, at Hagerstown Bible Church. The bride is the daughter of Donald and Susan Stottlemyer and the late Donna Kae Stottlemyer. The bridegroom is the son of Dr. Thomas A. and Sandra Miller of Lake Oswego, Ore. The bride is a 1991 graduate of Smithsburg High School. She received a bachelor's degree in education from Shepherd University and a master's degree in administration and supervision from Frostburg State University.

Cromer, a current council member, is seeking her second term. She said she decided to run again "to keep improving Hagerstown and be a voice for the citizens. " "I enjoy being on the council and I think I'm needed there," she said. Cromer said her greatest accomplishments on the council have been improving the quality of life for citizens and not raising taxes. She said the council's decision to hire nine new firefighters improved public safety and the council is continually improving the downtown.

HAGERSTOWN - A new addition to the Washington County Sheriff's Department is spearheading the department's effort to earn accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. (CALEA). Maj. Sam Billotti, formerly of the Frederick County (Md.) Sheriff's Office - where he served on patrol, as part of the Narcotics Task Force and as a member of the SWAT team - earned his law degree from the University of Baltimore by attending night school while on duty in Frederick County.

By MARLO BARNHART and GUY FLETCHER Staff Writers Hagerstown attorney Don Beachley is in the running for Washington County's vacant Circuit Court judgeship, getting the nod Wednesday from the Judicial Nominating Commission. Beachley, who has been a U.S. magistrate judge for 31/2 years, and Washington County State's Attorney Ken Long now are the only contenders for the post, which pays $96,500 a year. State Del. D. Bruce Poole, D-Washington, was not nominated by the commission, according to Mike O'Malley, administrator of the Maryland state courts.