DAVIS LOSES JUDGE JOB AFTER POT CHARGE

The Court Administrator's office has rescinded Windsor attorney Martha
Davis' approval to act as a part-time family court judge.

Lee Suskin, the court administrator, said Friday that Judge Amy
Davenport, who is the state's administrative judge, had removed Davis'
name from the list of approved attorneys who may be called in to sit
on family court cases in White River Junction.

"She is no longer on a list of eligible lawyers," Suskin said, noting
Davis had been removed because of the charges filed against her for
cultivation and possession of marijuana.

Davis, 61, a longtime attorney with offices on Main Street, was cited
by Vermont Fish and Wildlife wardens after they found 32 small
marijuana plants and 2 1/2 pounds of dried and packaged marijuana at
her home in early October. She had called the wardens complaining of
the smell of a dead deer on her Windsor property.

Suskin said Davis, like all acting judges, had undergone a background
check before being put on the acting judge list. She was also cleared
through the local judge and the Windsor County court clerk, he said.

The background check was simply an inquiry to the Vermont Professional
Responsibility Board whether there had been any violations lodged
against Davis for violating the lawyer's code of ethics.

Suskin said Davis never contacted him about her legal troubles, and
the office learned about it from news reports.

He said according to state law, the administrative judge can remove a
lawyer's name from the list at his or her discretion.

He added Davis was only on the list for Windsor Family Court, which
hears divorces and juvenile or custody matters.

Windsor County State's Attorney Robert Sand recently referred Davis'
case to a court diversion program, setting off a controversy with Gov.
James Douglas criticizing that decision.