By Michael Amon
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, March 3, 2002; Page SM03

John Hanson Briscoe, former speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates and a courtly figure in St. Mary's County politics and jurisprudence for more than 40 years, said last week he will retire in July after 16 years as a Circuit Court judge.

Speculation about Briscoe's departure has filled the courthouse in Leonardtown for the past month. In an interview Wednesday, Briscoe said he has decided he will leave the bench on July 1.

The decision will end a long and storied public life as a lawyer, Democratic lawmaker, lobbyist and jurist. Briscoe, 67, said he now plans to focus on his family and leisure activities.

"I am ready to enjoy retirement," Briscoe said. "I'm just ready to go."

With Briscoe's imminent retirement, local lawyers have turned their attention to who will fill the judgeship in St. Mary's County Circuit Court. Already at least 10 lawyers have been mentioned as possible candidates for the governor's appointment.

Adding grist to the rumor mill, another judgeship in St. Mary's County could be up for grabs if state lawmakers authorize a second District Court position in Leonardtown to ease the overburdened system. The bill's chances remain unclear, though the legislation has the support of House Judiciary Committee Chairman Joseph F. Vallario Jr. (D-Prince George's), said Del. John L. Bohanan Jr. (D-St. Mary's).

Local lawyers Bryan Dugan, Joseph R. Densford and Christy Holt Chesser, county administrator Alfred A. Lacer and Assistant State's Attorney Theodore Weiner have said in interviews they will apply for the Circuit Court opening.

Karen Abrams, a Leonardtown lawyer considered a favorite for the job, said she hasn't decided, though she is interested in the District Court position. Judge John F. Slade of the District Court, Master F. Michael Harris of the Circuit Court, and attorneys Sam Baldwin (Briscoe's son-in-law) and George Sparling are also considered possible candidates.

"I think every lawyer in St. Mary's County except me is going to be applying for it," said State's Attorney Richard D. Fritz (R), the county's chief prosecutor.

Candidates apply for the judgeship through a local nominating committee, which whittles the number down to three to five names from which the governor makes the appointment. After being appointed, a judge must be "confirmed" in a countywide vote during the next election cycle.

Some local observers say that whoever gets the Circuit Court appointment would face an election challenge in 2004, a relatively rare event in Maryland judicial politics. St. Mary's County has not seen such a contest since 1972, when Joseph Mattingly defeated John Weiner, who had been appointed a year before.

"I think whoever gets the Circuit Court position better anticipate a challenge," Dugan said.

In 1986, when then-Gov. Harry Hughes appointed Briscoe to the bench, no one dared run against the powerful former speaker who had for years openly spoken of his interest in being named to the bench. On one occasion, while still speaker in the late 1970s, Briscoe was so certain of his appointment to an appellate court he had his portrait painted to hang on the wall next to other former speakers.

The son of former St. Mary's state's attorney John Henry Thomas Briscoe, he was elected to the House of Delegates in 1962 at the age of 28, after running on a reform slate.

Briscoe was elected speaker in 1973 and ruled the House with an emphasis on order and decorum. Known as a Southern gentleman, Briscoe once during a heated debate about the death penalty told a delegate from Baltimore that he would have him removed from the chamber by a state trooper if he continued his harsh remarks.

After retiring both as speaker and delegate in 1979, Briscoe failed to get the judgeship he desired and instead became a lobbyist for various industries. That decision is one of Briscoe's few regrets.

"It was a ticklish situation," Briscoe says now. "It was the most unpleasant feeling I have ever had. If I had to do it again, I wouldn't do it."

As a judge in St. Mary's, Briscoe developed a reputation for fairness, though he often infuriated prosecutors.

In a highly publicized case in 1994 involving a father and son whose fishing boat sank in an accident that killed three, Briscoe dismissed manslaughter charges against them before their defense lawyers even presented their case. In a similar instance in September, he acquitted a Lexington Park man charged with first-degree murder for allegedly providing a gun that later was used in a killing.

Ultimately, though, prosecutors and defense attorneys agree that Briscoe allowed both sides to state their cases without interruption or suggestion of bias.

"When Judge Briscoe retires, my office is going to be saddened greatly," Fritz said. "He's going to be a hard act to follow."

As judge, Briscoe saw the county's population growth translate into a greater burden on the courts. Two new Circuit Court judgeships were created since Briscoe's appointment to handle the increase in cases.

He also saw the rise of crack cocaine use in the 1990s, a phenomenon he called "the biggest and most difficult development I have seen in my time here."

"It's still here, big time," Briscoe said. "I've seen it in the juvenile justice system. I have seen it in the family law system. They become dysfunctional because one or the other gets involved and it drags them all down."

As the county's senior judge, Briscoe has more administrative responsibilities than most. He oversees a $1.2 million annual budget, approves hirings and firings in the courthouse and makes sure complaints about maintenance and space are resolved. Judge Marvin S. Kaminetz, who is second in seniority, is likely to take over those responsibilities.

When asked what he hopes will be his legacy, Briscoe is quick to answer with a phrase from an old newspaper article written when he was speaker: Briscoe is firm but fair.

"That's all I want to be remembered as," Briscoe said. "If you can't suffer fools and tolerate people, then you can't be a good judge. I am a good judge, and I have been."