Judge Illegally Recorded Colleagues In Anne Arundel County: Prosecutor

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — An Anne Arundel County judge was accused of illegally recording two fellow judges, prosecutors announced recently.

A grand jury indicted Anne Arundel County Orphans' Court Associate Judge Marc Knapp on one count of illegal wiretap and one count of misconduct in office, Maryland State Prosecutor Charlton T. Howard III said Friday.

"According to the charging document, Judge Knapp recorded judicial deliberations without the knowledge and consent of the other parties to the conversation," Howard's press release said. "It is illegal in Maryland to record conversations without the consent of all the parties to the conversation."

The Orphans' Court is a panel of three judges that supervises the management of the estates of deceased residents.

Knapp and his fellow judges were elected in November 2022 to serve four-year terms.

The charging document accused Knapp of recording confidential judicial deliberations between him and the other two judges without their knowledge or permission on June 4 in the court chambers. The document only identified the other judges as "JUDGE A" and "JUDGE B." The Baltimore Banner reported that those judges were Judge David Duba and Chief Judge Vickie Gipson.

"Judge Knapp maintains his innocence. We look forward to an opportunity to address these charges in court," Peter O'Neill, Knapp's attorney, told The Banner on Saturday.

This is the second round of accusations against Knapp this year.

In May, Knapp was charged with stalking Gipson. Those charges and the two associated peace orders were later dropped, The Banner and The Capital Gazette reported, noting that Duba later resigned.

The Orphans' Court shares an office with the Anne Arundel County Register of Wills, which also came under fire this summer.

In June, then Register of Wills Erica Griswold pleaded guilty to misconduct related to over $6,000 in stolen tax money, prompting her removal from office. In July, Griswold was sentenced to no jail time, but she received two years of probation.

See Also:

• Judge Charged With Stalking Another Judge In Anne Arundel County: Reports
• Stolen Tax Money Punishment Decided For Anne Arundel Ex-Elected Official
• Register Of Wills Removed In Anne Arundel After Tax Misconduct: Office
• Register Of Wills Pleads Guilty To Misconduct In Anne Arundel: Courts
• Tax Money Stolen By Elected Official In Anne Arundel County: Prosecutor