Gov. Parris N. Glendening yesterday elevated county District Court Judge Nancy Davis-Loomis to the county Circuit Court bench.

The 52-year-old Annapolis resident and president-elect of the Anne Arundel County Bar Association will fill the vacancy created last year with the retirement of Judge Lawrence H. Rushworth of Arnold.

"Nancy Davis-Loomis has been a dedicated judge while serving on the Anne Arundel District Court," Mr. Glendening said in a written statement. "Her depth of knowledge and legal background will add a new diversity of experience and great value to the Circuit Court."

Judge Davis-Loomis, who yesterday presided over the bail review hearing of two Naval Academy midshipmen charged with raping a fellow midshipman, said she was was not prepared for news of her appointment to the Circuit Court bench.

"I guess I'm still kind of in shock," she said. "I love being a District Court judge. ... I'm really excited about being on the Circuit Court."

Circuit Court Judge Clayton Greene Jr., the county's chief administrative judge, praised the governor's action.

"We're very pleased with the appointment. We've been down a judge since December," he said. "We're very pleased to get back up to a full complement of 10 judges."

Judge Davis-Loomis was one of 13 finalists for the position. The state Judicial Nominating Commission interviewed the finalists late last year and forwarded the names of the commission's five top choices to the governor for consideration.

The governor, who has the final word on appointments, interviewed the candidates last week.

The other four candidates for the bench seat were District Court Judge Paul Hackner, Assistant State's Attorney Frank Ragione, Court Master Cynthia Ferris and Charles Obrecht, an attorney in private practice in Annapolis.

Friends and colleagues of Judge Davis-Loomis said she's well-suited to her new job.

"She'll make a wonderful addition to the Circuit Court bench," outgoing county bar association President Deborah L. Potter said. "Most people, I think, are unaware of the broad background and experience she brings to the bench."

Judge Davis-Loomis started out as a school teacher. She graduated magna cum laude from the University of Akron and also earned a master's degree in education there.

She worked for five years in Ohio as a junior high school teacher and then served for one year as a junior high school counselor before moving to Maryland and attending law school.

Judge Davis-Loomis earned her law degree from the University of Maryland School of Law and later worked as an assistant Anne Arundel County attorney from 1983 to 1986, representing the Department of Social Services and the Office of Planning and Zoning.

She then worked for eight years in a general practice firm, becoming a partner in 1990. In the early 1990s she also taught at the University of Maryland School of Social Work, lecturing on family law and domestic violence issues.

From 1994 to 1996 she served as master and chancery with the county Circuit Court, adjudicating civil child abuse, neglect and delinquency cases. In 1996, Mr. Glendening appointed Judge Davis-Loomis to the county District Court.

There, she presided over a docket of small claims cases that included neighborly disputes over biting monkeys and sick snakes, shady auto mechanics and unpaid chiropractic bills.

Next week, in an effort to move such cases more smoothly through the legal system Judge Davis-Loomis, will oversee the first county foray into a small claims mediation program.

"Most of the time, the litigants ... have problems or issues with each other that can be better handled outside the court, but they just haven't had the opportunity to talk to the other person," Judge Davis-Loomis said.

Recently, she was chosen to serve as president of the county bar association. After a presenting a brief spoof of the "Judge Judy" television program with some of her colleagues, Judge Davis-Loomis is scheduled to be sworn in as head of the 850-member group at its annual membership meeting on Monday.

As in the mediation program, she wants to use her term as the head of the association to open up lines of communication within the courtroom. Her leadership plans for the year ahead include addressing the need for greater civility within the bar association and introducing more attorneys to the burgeoning technological resources available on the Internet.

"We need to remind attorneys and judges this is a difficult job made even more difficult when parties can't treat each other in a civil manner," Judge Davis-Loomis said.

As for her new Circuit Court seat, Judge Davis-Loomis is expected to be sworn in to that position within 30 days, Judge Greene said.

"I've got plenty of work for her to do," he joked.

------
Staff Writer Mary Grace Gallagher contributed to this story.

Published July 06, 2000, The Capital, Annapolis, Md.
Copyright © 2000 The Capital, Annapolis, Md.