Criminal Justice
Md. Judge Fights Environmental Charge
Posted Mar 12, 2008, 07:18 pm CDT
By Martha Neil
A Maryland judge who is accused of illegally dumping construction debris around his shoreline home is fighting the criminal charge.
Judge Askew W. Gatewood Jr., 57, is contending, through his legal counsel, that the statute of limitations on prosecuting the case against him has expired and that a tolling agreement he signed doesn't apply, reports the Capital.
The 23-year judge, who sits in Baltimore District Court, also claims, alternatively, that he is the victim of unfair and discriminatory prosecution, and that he is innocent, according to the Annapolis newspaper. (By contrast, Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold expressed concern last year that the judge was being given favorable treatment, reports the Examiner.)
As discussed in an earlier ABAJournal.com post, Gatewood is being prosecuted by Anne Arundel County and the Maryland Department of the Environment.
If convicted of unlawful dumping, unlawfully filling in wetlands, water pollution and nine counts of construction without a sediment control plan, he faces a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a $75,000 in fines, the Capital reports.
However, a neighbor who apparently was accused of similar conduct in connection with the same incident but may have settled prior to the filing of any criminal charge reportedly received a lesser penalty. It was a $5,000 fine for a wetlands violation, and a requirement that debris placed in tidal waters without permission be removed.
No disciplinary action is being taken against the judge, pending the outcome of the case, according to Darrell S. Pressley of the Court Information Office. "The court will let the legal process work. Judge Gatewood has been a judge for more than 23 years. These charges do not relate to his performance on the bench," he told the Baltimore Sun last month.
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