Judge Diane O. Leasure

Howard County Circuit Court Judge Diane O. Leasure announced she will retire from the bench in November. Judge Leasure is taking a position as a senior judicial fellow and lecturer at the University of Maryland School of Law. She is expected to continue to take the bench on an as-needed basis as many retired judges thankfully do.

I don’t know why she is retiring. I do know she was up for election in 2012. It is possible she wanted to get out before she had to run for re-election? Maybe. If so, it would be another arrow in my “electing judges is so dumb in the first place” quiver.

I’m older now and I can remember when every Hall of Fame athlete inducted now began their career. I remember getting sad the first time I remembered the rookie year of someone being inducted. I think it was the late great Walter Payton (because I had a Bears helmet that lives on in old home movies).

Judge Leasure took the bench around the same time I passed the bar. So I feel a little like I did when Payton made the Hall of Fame.