Judge Barry G. Williams

Immediately prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Williams served as Special Litigation Counsel in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. He reviewed, investigated and prosecuted hate crimes and law enforcement misconduct matters nationwide, while supervising and mentoring junior attorneys in the Division.
 

Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Williams served as an Assistant State’s Attorney for Baltimore City from 1989 to 1997. He prosecuted hundreds of cases including murder, robbery, assault, narcotics and weapon violations. The Office of the State’s Attorney for Baltimore City (BCSAO) is the largest local prosecutorial office in the state of Maryland and prosecutes over 40,000 cases each year.
 

Judge Williams served as an Associate Judge on the Circuit for Baltimore City since 2005.Over his more than 15 years of service, he presided over matters in the civil, family and criminal dockets. Judge Williams served as the Judge-in-Charge of the Criminal docket, Judge-in-Charge of both grand and petit juries, and chaired the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council for Baltimore City. He is currently the Circuit Representative to the Conference of Circuit Court Judges and is also a member of the Court of Appeals’ Judicial Council’s Equal Justice Committee. In 2017, Judge Williams received the Robert C. Heeney Award from the Criminal Law and Practice Section of Maryland State Bar Association. In 2018, he received the Mary Ellen Barbera Judicial Excellence Award from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey University of Maryland School of Law.
 

Judge Williams is an active member of Baltimore’s legal community.  He holds memberships in the Harry A. Cole Judicial Council, the American Bar Association, the Maryland State Bar Association, the Bar Association of Baltimore City and the Monumental City Bar Association (MCBA).  The MCBA is Baltimore’s oldest and largest specialty bar association, which maintains a rich history of advocacy for African American attorneys and the interests of Baltimore City’s African American community.
 

Judge Williams attended the University of Virginia and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History. He currently serves as a Trustee of the College Foundation. Judge Williams then attended the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, where he received his Juris Doctorate, and was admitted to the Maryland Bar in 1987. He served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Arrie W. Davis in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City and as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Robert M. Bell in the Maryland Court of Special Appeals.