GOVERNOR O’MALLEY APPOINTS JUDGES TO MONTGOMERY, WASHINGTON, AND WICOMICO COUNTY COURTS

Highly qualified, diverse candidates selected to serve the State

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Governor Martin O’Malley announced today the elevation of the Honorable Dana Moylan Wright to the Circuit Court for Washington County and the appointment of John Phillip Rue II to serve on the District Court for Wicomico County and three judges to serve on the District Court for Montgomery County—Jeannie Eun Kyung Cho, John Christian Moffett, and Karla Natasha Smith. These appointees bring a diverse array of legal experiences to their new jobs. They also represent the ethnic and gender diversity of our great state.

Over the last month, Governor O’Malley has conducted numerous interviews with candidates recommended to him by the trial court judicial nominating commissions. All of the judges selected to serve in Maryland’s judiciary were recommended to him by the commissions.

In the District Court for Wicomico County, Governor O’Malley has appointed John Phillip Rue II. Mr. Rue has a long history of public service. He has served as an Assistant State’s Attorney for St. Mary’s and Wicomico Counties and with the Public Defender’s Office in Somerset, Worchester, and Wicomico Counties. From 1990 to 1997, he was the District Public Defender for the Lower Eastern Shore. During that time, he oversaw all of the attorneys in the entire region while maintaining a full time trial docket. Mr. Rue also has significant experience in private practice and has been a solo practitioner specializing in criminal defense since 2009. He graduated from the University of Baltimore School of Law and St. Mary’s College of Maryland.