The Maryland General Assembly is considering legislation to protect judges’ personal information after a Washington County judge was killed in his own driveway in October by a man who was angry over losing his kids in a custody case.
Pedro Argote shot Circuit Court Judge Andrew Wilkinson at the judge’s Hagerstown home hours after a hearing, police said.
Argote began searching for her husband on the internet months earlier and stalked him before shooting him in the driveway, Wilkinson’s widow said.
“This was a close contact assassination by a disgruntled defendant who hated our judicial system,” Stephanie Wilkinson said.
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Wilkinson testified in support of the Judge Andrew F. Wilkinson Judicial Security Act, which would allow protected people such as current and retired judges and their families to request their personal information not be made public, posted on the internet or social media. Judges across the state support it.
It is unclear how Argote found the judge’s address. Argote’s body was found in woods days after the murder.
“I try to tell myself that my husband didn’t suffer, but in reality, my heart is shattered when I think Drew’s last feeling on Earth was fear,” Stephanie Wilkinson said.
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The act would protect judges’ home addresses, phone numbers and Social Security numbers. The protection also would extend to spouses and children in the home.
The act would also create a task force to study and make recommendations to make courthouses safer in Maryland, including how many security officers should be present in the courtroom during proceedings. That report would be due next January.
Violators could be charged with a misdemeanor punishable with jail time and a fine.
State Sen. Paul Corderman, R-Washington County, sponsors the legislation. His father was a judge in the same county in the 1980s when pipe bombs he received in a package at his home exploded. He survived the attack.
“I can’t understand what Judge Wilkinson’s family was feeling, because unfortunately we lost Judge Wilkinson, who was a true public servant,” Corderman said. “But we’re going to do everything we can to keep judges safe.”
Similar legislation failed last year. Lawmakers expressed hope a bill would pass this year in light of the tragedy.
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