Maryland Question 3 approval presents problem for winner at polls

November 5, 2010

ANNAPOLIS, Maryland: On November 2, 2010, Maryland voters approved Question 3, which deals with the qualifications of judges in Orphans' Court in Baltimore City. The Orphans' Court in Baltimore, and in all Maryland counties except of two, does not require its judges to be lawyers, therefore judges do not have to be member of the bar. The amendment would require that judges in the court be members of the bar.

During the general election, voters also elected Ramona Moore Baker for the position of judge in the Orphans' Court. This is where the problem lies. Ramona Moore Baker is not a lawyer, according to reports. The Maryland Attorney General's office issued an opinion that the amendment should prevent Baker from taking that office. Baker stated on November 3 that she will sue on the grounds that the measure is unclear. She stated that the proposal did not define "Orphans' Court" on the ballot. She argued that voters believed that the court only deals with children who have lost their parents, and not with estate and probate problems.

According to Baker, "You don’t win and lose. You either win or lose. There’s no loss here.”

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