Judge Kenneth A. Talley named district administrative judge for the District Court of Maryland in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s counties

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 27, 2025

 

Government Relations and Public Affairs
187 Harry S. Truman Parkway
Annapolis, Maryland 21401

 

Judge Kenneth A. Talley named district administrative judge for the District Court of Maryland in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s counties

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – District Court of Maryland Chief Judge John P. Morrissey, with the approval of Supreme Court of Maryland Chief Justice Matthew J. Fader, has named Charles County District Court Judge Kenneth A. Talley as the new administrative judge for District 4 (Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s counties). Judge Talley’s new role is effective August 1, 2025.

Judge Talley succeeds District Administrative Judge Karen Christy Holt Chesser, who will step down from her administrative judge role in preparation for her retirement in 2026.

“Judge Talley is an excellent jurist and choice as the new administrative judge for the District Court in Southern Maryland,” said Supreme Court of Maryland Chief Justice Matthew J. Fader. “I am confident that he will continue to be an effective leader in his district to provide fair, efficient, and effective justice for all.”

District administrative judges oversee the administration of the court and manage trial calendars to ensure the expeditious disposition of cases.

“Judge Talley’s leadership in the District Court in Charles County for the past 16 years has prepared him to take on this new role,” said District Court of Maryland Chief Judge John P. Morrissey. “Administrative Judge Chesser has been an exemplary administrative Judge, has served her District well for the past 15 years, and will be available to manage the transition with Judge Talley.”   

Judge Talley was appointed as an associate judge to the District Court in Charles County in May 2009 by then-Governor Martin O’Malley. 

Judge Talley has served on the Judiciary’s Security and Post-COVID Judicial Operations Committees. Additionally, he served as a member of the Maryland Judiciary’s Judicial Council Equal Justice Committee from 2020 to 2022. 

Judge Talley served as a law clerk for retired Judge Herman C. Dawson, Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, from 1998 to 1999, before starting his career as an attorney at Don Ansell & Associates, at which he worked from 1999 to 2000. He formerly served as an assistant public defender in Charles County from 2000 to 2005. Additionally, he served as a partner at Collins & Talley from 2005 to 2007, and as an assistant state’s attorney in Charles County from 2007 to 2009. 

Judge Talley earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Maryland, College Park, in government and politics in 1990, and a juris doctorate from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1993. He is admitted to the Maryland Bar, and he is a member of the Maryland State Bar Association. He has been a member of the Charles County Bar Association since 2002, serving on its board of directors from 2004 to 2009, as treasurer, secretary, vice president, and president, and still served in the role as president upon his appointment to the bench in 2009. Judge Talley was also a member of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.

Judge Talley served from 2004 to 2007 as a community judge for the Charles County Teen Court Program, where he earned the Community Judge Appreciation Award for Outstanding Service. He also served as a member of the board of directors of Jude House, Inc. In 2001, Judge Talley earned the Assistant Public Defender of the Year Award, District IV.

“It is a great honor and a privilege to be able to serve the citizens, staff, and judges of Southern Maryland, said Judge Kenneth A. Talley, Charles County District Court.”

 

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