Audrey Anne Creighton

Audrey Anne Creighton opened her law firm in 2015 and is actively engaged in the private practice of law.  Prior to retiring from the bench in 2015, she was sworn in as a judge on The District Court of Maryland for Montgomery County in September of 2010 and elevated to Circuit Court for Montgomery County in 2014.  She was appointed by Governor Martin O’ Malley, as the second Hispanic judge in Montgomery County, and the fourth Hispanic judge in Maryland.  Prior to her judicial appointment, Judge Creighton was an Assistant Public Defender in the Montgomery County Maryland Office of The Public Defender.  She was one of two Hispanic bilingual attorneys in the office who handled serious felony cases.  As such, Judge Creighton has extensive trial experience, including having tried close to 100 jury trials, and having presided over approximately twenty jury trials. During her more than twenty years as a criminal defense attorney, she has tried virtually every kind of criminal case, including several murder cases.

Audrey Creighton has broad legal experience. She earned her Juris Doctorate Degree from the University Of Baltimore School Of Law in 1986.  At the University of Baltimore law school, she was editor of the Law Forum, published legal articles, and received awards for her legal writing. Thereafter, she worked in clerkship for the Honorable Richard P. Gilbert, Chief Judge of The Court of Special Appeals of Maryland.  Following her clerkship, Audrey Creighton was an associate with the law firm of Rabineau & Peregoff in Baltimore City.  Subsequently, as an Assistant Attorney General for The State of Maryland, she argued cases before the Courts of Appeal of Maryland. She then joined the Maryland Public Defender’s Office where she served as a top trial attorney for 20 years.

Audrey Creighton served as the eleventh President of the Maryland Hispanic Bar Association (MHBA) from 2003-2004, and as a member of the MHBA Board of Directors for over a decade.  In 2010, Audrey Creighton was honored with the MHBA Leadership Award. Additionally, Judge Creighton has served as Treasurer of the Montgomery County, Maryland Bar Foundation, Inc., and as a member of the foundation’s Diversity Committee including serving as a mentor in the Pipeline Scholar Program. Judge Creighton has also held various leadership positions within the Montgomery County Bar Association.  She has served as Treasurer, Secretary, and on the Executive Committee. She has chaired the Specialty Bar Associations Committee, and has served as a mentor for the Montgomery County Bar Association mentor/mentee program. Judge Creighton has also served on the Board of Directors of the Montgomery County Chapter of the State of Maryland Women’s Bar Association and is currently on the State of Maryland Criminal Law Council.

During the school year, Judge Creighton taught Trial Advocacy at American University’s Washington College of law for seven years. She also volunteered as a judge for mock trial and moot court competitions at the law school. Additionally, Judge Creighton volunteered as a judge for Montgomery County’s Teen Court and as a judge for the Maryland State Bar Association Statewide High School Mock Trial Competition. Prior to her judicial appointment, Judge Creighton served as a member of the Character Committee for The Court of Appeals of Maryland for the Seventh Circuit.

Audrey Creighton is of Spanish descent.  Her ancestors immigrated to Quito, Ecuador from Arcos, Spain.  Her mother later emigrated from Ecuador to the United States. Judge Creighton’s father was of Irish descent and was fluent in Spanish. Audrey Creighton grew up speaking both Spanish and English at home, since her maternal grandmother lived with her family and did not speak English.  Judge Creighton was raised in Montgomery County, Maryland and graduated from Thomas S. Wootton High School in 1978.  She received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English from The University of Maryland in 1982.