John P. Rellas
As a longtime Baltimore County District Court judge, he ‘saw the humanity of the people who came before him’
John P. Rellas, a retired Maryland District Court judge for Baltimore County admired for his courtroom demeanor, died of pneumonia Monday at Stella Maris Hospice. The resident of the Phoenix section of Baltimore County was 89.
Born in Nashua, N.H., he was the son of Pericles Rellas, who owned a wholesale and retail produce business, and Barbara Rallas, a homemaker.
He attended the Tilton School in Tilton, N.H., and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Stetson University in DeLand, Fla.
He was in the Navy during World War II, serving in the Pacific.
He moved to Baltimore as a student of the University of Baltimore School of Law, from which he earned a degree. Admitted to the Maryland Bar in 1961, he initially worked as an accountant for the Continental Can Co.
He met Fay Mastorides at a wedding in Washington, D.C. They married in 1952 after a courtship that included his once hitchhiking to her hometown of Youngstown, Ohio.
He established a private law practice on Courtland Avenue in Towson. From 1972 to 1976 he was also a Baltimore County assistant public defender and worked under Paul Feeley.
Gov. Marvin Mandel named him a District Court judge in 1976. He retired in 1992.
“John came on the bench having served as a public defender and from a traditional private law practice. He had a wealth of experience,” said retired Maryland Court of Appeals Judge Joseph F. Murphy. “He was a great person and a great judge. He never took himself too seriously.
“He also made sure that everyone in his courtroom understood the importance of the proceedings and the need for fair and impartial treatment,” he said.
“Attorneys appreciated the opportunity to appear before him,” said Judge Murphy. “He nurtured the kind of courtroom that should be maintained. He allowed a lawyer to try his case but did not permit overly aggressive behavior.”
Other legal colleagues recalled Mr. Rellas’ enthusiasm for his work.
“He thought that being a District Court judge was the greatest job in the world,” said Judge Christopher Panos of the Baltimore City Circuit Court. “He was born to it. He could relate to people from all walks of life and had empathy for the people in his court. He had a fine judicial temperament and was committed to public service.
“In the courtroom, he had objectivity and a deep and abiding respect for the rule of law,” said Mr. Panos. “He had an amazing intuition and insights, and could see the interconnected components in a case.
“He knew from experience there isn’t always a winner and a loser in a case,” Judeg Panos said. “He saw the humanity of the people who came before him.”
Peter J. Rellas said his father strove to understand the litigants who appeared in his courtroom.
“My dad knew he wasn’t always getting the truth. So he questioned people about their underlying problems,” said his son. “He could play a bit of a Sherlock Holmes. He looked beyond the pleadings and he looked at the people. I recall a case he once discussed. Two parties were suing each other. He realized this was not a suit. It was a lovers’ quarrel.”
Retired Baltimore County Circuit Judge John F. Fader III said that Mr. Rellas “loved being a judge, and was a good, commonsense practitioner of the law. John lived life to its fullest. … He also enjoyed and celebrated his Greek heritage.”
Leonard H. Shapiro, a former Baltimore County assistant state’s attorney, recalled Mr. Rellas’ ability to resolve people’s issues. He recalled a case in which the defendants received probation before judgment — which means they would get probation, but were technically not found guilty. But the judge still wanted to send a message.
“Two adolescent brothers came charged with stealing a couple CDs,” recalled Mr. Shapiro. “He called the lawyers and their parents into his chambers and said he would give these boys probation but he needed to make an impression. He then returned to the bench and let the brothers have it verbally. He laid into them.
“By the time he was finished, the parents were in tears and so was the boys’ pastor. He still gave them probation before judgment,” Mr. Shapiro said.
Family members said Mr. Rellas enjoyed travel and the outdoors. He fished and hunted for pheasant and waterfowl. He also owned dogs, including Hungarian Vizslas and German shorthaired pointers.
He spent his winters in Naples, Fla., where did part-time mediation and arbitration work.
George James Stamos, a family friend from Towson, said Mr. Rellas endeared himself to people with his “dignity and quiet strength. He lived his life completely, and on his own terms.”
Family members said he played his final round of golf at age 88 — two days before he began cancer treatments.
Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday at the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation, 24 W. Preston St., where he was a member.
In addition to his son, survivors include his wife of 64 years, a retired Baltimore city high school teacher and tennis coach; and a sister, Sirmo Nikas of Ipswich, Mass. Another son, Aris J. Rellas, died in 1996.