Andrew Wilkinson biography: 13 things about US Circuit Judge from Hagerstown, Maryland

Andrew F. Wilkinson was an American judge who resided in Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland, United States with his wife Stephanie Wilkinson. He was born in Agana, Guam.

Andrew attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA and Emory University School of Law in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Here are 13 more things about him:

1. In 1985, he joined St. Ann Catholic Church in Hagerstown.
2. In 1994, he graduated from the University of North Carolina with a bachelor’s degree in economics.
3. In 1997, he received his law degree from Emory University School of Law and was admitted to Maryland bar.
4. In 1998, he joined the Washington County Bar Association. From 1998 to 2002, he was a Maryland Trial Lawyers Association member. From 1998 to 2003, he was a Barton and Williams associate.
5. From 2003 to 2006, he was a Barton and Williams partner. From 2004 to 2012, he was a member of Food Resources‘ board of directors.
6. From 2006 to 2012, he was a Washington County assistant county attorney. From 2006 to 2019, he was a member of the character committee of the Maryland State Board of Law Examiners.
7. From 2008 to 2012, he was a Hagerstown Young Men’s Christian Association youth soccer coach.
8. From 2010 to 2012, he was a member of the Washington County Bar Association‘s board of judges. From 2012 to 2014, he was a Divelbiss and Wilkinson associate and a Maugansville Little League assistant baseball coach.
9. From 2014 to 2018, he was a Divelbiss and Wilkinson partner. He was appointed to serve as circuit court judge by Larry Hogan, who served as the 62nd Maryland governor from January 21, 2015 to January 18, 2023.
10. On January 10, 2020, he was sworn in as a Washington County Circuit Court judge.
11. He presided over the divorce case of his fellow Hagerstown residents Pedro Argote and Eugenia Argote, which Pedro filed in June 2022.
12. In March 2023, he wrote in an opinion that it seems Pedro “entered the court process of divorce without recognizing that the court will not simply sit back and wait for two years while he figures out what he wants to do”.
13. At around 9:00 a.m. on October 19, 2023, he presided over the divorce hearing between Pedro and Eugenia. He awarded full custody of their four children to her with no rights to visitation or contact for him and ordered Pedro, who failed to appear at the hearing, to pay her $1,120 a month for their four children. At around 8:00 p.m., he was fatally shot outside his home in Hagerstown allegedly by Pedro. He was 52.