Judge Charged With Stalking Another Judge In Anne Arundel County: Reports

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — A judge was charged with stalking a fellow judge in Anne Arundel County, The Baltimore Banner and The Capital both reported this week.

Both outlets reported that Orphans' Court Chief Judge Vickie Gipson on Tuesday was granted a temporary peace order against Associate Judge Marc Knapp. The Capital reported that both judges will remain on the bench, but the peace order will require Knapp to avoid Gipson unless there is a third party present. A final peace order hearing will be held on June 3 with a higher burden of proof required to issue a full peace order, The Capital said.

Gipson accused Knapp of “increasingly aggressive and volatile” behavior that may be discrimination against her as a “Black, Female judge in authority above him,” The Banner said.

The Banner said that Knapp, who is white, alleged that Gipson “decided to play the race card and the gender card.”

Knapp told The Capital that he feels left out of decision-making. Knapp also told The Banner that he and Gipson have had arguments so loud that they received complaints.

“My concerns are not just for myself. My concerns are for everyone in the office,” Gipson said, according to The Capital.

The Capital reported that a security guard was assigned to the judges' chambers after the conflict escalated, leading Knapp to start working in the courtroom. The Capital said Gipson once called the police after Knapp refused to leave the courtroom, leading officers to act as mediators the rest of the day.

“She thinks that being the chief judge makes her some sort of super judge,” Knapp told The Banner. “She has never accepted the fact that we were all elected to the same position and have the same authority.”

Court records show that Knapp was charged Sunday with one count of stalking, a misdemeanor. The case file alleges that the offense happened from May 2023 to April 2024. A trial is scheduled for July 19.

The Orphans' Court is Anne Arundel County's probate court. It supervises the management of the estates of deceased residents.

Orphans' Court judges run for general election every four years in Anne Arundel County. The county's three Orphans' Court judges all sit on a panel together to hear matters.

Gipson has served on the Orphans' Court since December 2018. Knapp has been on the court since December 2022.

To learn more about the accusations, read the full stories from The Banner and The Capital.