Judges usually are seen as stern authority figures ? more likely to lecture than to laugh.
But Judge Richard Bernhardt is an exception. He often displays his dry, self-deprecating humor.
For instance, Bernhardt, in an interview with The Examiner, explained the hardships of being born in Wisconsin.
“I?m still a huge Packers fan,” he said. “It?s almost like, once you?re born there, it?s a blood disorder: You?re a Packers fan the rest of your life.”
But Bernhardt said he is serious about his passionfor the law.
“It may sound corny, but the most I have to offer this community I can offer from this office,” he said. “I grew up in a house where public service was really stressed. My mother and father taught us that it was a noble thing to give back to your community.”
In his year as a Howard County Circuit judge, Bernhardt has gained a reputation for his welcoming demeanor toward attorneys and parties in court cases.
“The parties are the most important people in the courtroom,” he said. “They are entitled to respect. It?s important for them to be listened to.”
Bernhardt was appointed as a judge by Gov. Robert Ehrlich on July 25, after being an attorney for more than 20 years.
He stressed the importance of this appointment ? that he was thoroughly vetted by lawyers, residents and the governor before getting the job.
“You?ve gone through an intensive qualification process,” he said. “Our peers believe we?re qualified. We?ve done the job. Why change?”
Bernhardt graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1980 with a bachelor?s degree in government and politics and a minor in economics and received his juris doctorate in 1983 from the University of Maryland School of Law.
In 1984, Bernhardt began a 16-year period as a public defender. From 2000 to 2005, he served as an assistant attorney general in the Criminal Investigation Division of the Office of the Maryland Attorney General.
There, he was assigned to the Maryland Insurance Administration-Insurance Fraud Division and investigated and prosecuted individuals committing insurance fraud.
If elected to a 15-year term, Bernhardt said he wants to institute a mental health court on the Circuit Court, which could help defendants, much like the drug court his running mate Judge Louis Becker worked to establish in Howard County?s District Court.
2006 election
Three candidates are vying for two seats on the Howard County Circuit Court.
» The Examiner will profile challenger David Titman, an Ellicott City attorney, Thursday.
