A Montgomery County judge has been named one of two recipients of a national award recognizing leadership in improving outcomes for people in the justice system with mental health or substance use needs.
The Honorable Marina L. Sabett, an associate judge for the District Court of Maryland for Montgomery County, was selected as a 2026 recipient of the Judge Stephen S. Goss Memorial Award for Leadership.
The award is presented by the Judges & Psychiatrists Leadership Initiative, a partnership of The Council of State Governments Justice Center, the American Psychiatric Association Foundation and the National Center for State Courts.
According to the organizations, this year’s recipients were selected from an “exceptional pool of nominees representing 20 states” by a national committee made up of judges, psychiatrists and people with lived experience. The award recognizes judges and psychiatrists for their commitment to improving outcomes for people in the justice system who have mental health or substance use needs.
Sabett serves as the coordinate judge for behavioral health for Maryland’s judiciary and has led the Statewide Steering Committee on Behavioral Health and the Justice System. She previously received the 2017 Wayne Fenton Memorial Award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
According to the Maryland Manual Online, Sabett has served as an associate judge for District Court of Maryland, District 6, Montgomery County, since January 20, 2017. She has served on several committees and subcommittees within Maryland’s Judicial Council, including those focused on behavioral health, court technology, accessibility and accommodations, judicial education and specialty courts and dockets. She has also been a member of Maryland’s Behavioral Health Advisory Council since 2024.
Before joining the District Court, Sabett served as an administrative law judge with Maryland’s Office of Administrative Hearings from 2004 to 2007 and again from 2010 until 2017. Earlier in her career, she practiced law with Venable LLP, becoming a partner in 1999.
Sabett graduated summa cum laude from Loyola College in 1987 and received her law degree from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1990. She was admitted to the Maryland Bar that same year.
The Goss Awards are named in memory of Judge Stephen S. Goss and recognize leaders working at the intersection of behavioral health and the justice system.
