Common Pleas Judges

Hess, Kevin A. (Senior Judge)

Kevin A. Hess was born April 25, 1947, in Erie, the son of James M. Hess and Adele C. Francis; graduate from Dickinson College (A.D.), 1969; Dickinson School of Law (J.D.), 1972; formerly on staff of Adj. General, Pa. Army, National Guard; member, co., Pa. Bar Association; former assistant district attorney; former criminal law instructor, Pa. Minor Judiciary; present adjunct faculty Dickinson School of Law; auth., Pa. Civil Practice; elected judge, Court of Common Pleas, November 1985; retained as judge, November 1995 and 2005.  Appointed as Senior Judge January 1, 2016.

Guido, Edward E.  (President Judge)

Edward E. Guido was born on June 3, 1950 in Turtle Creek, PA the son of Sylvester and Betty Jane Guido; Dickinson College (A.B.) 1972; Dickinson School of Law (J.D.) 1975; private practice Pittsburgh, PA 1975-76; asst. public defender 1977-85; asst. district attorney 1985-92 Cumberland Co., PA; adjunct asst. prof., Dickinson College 1999---; elected judge, Court of Common Pleas November 1997; married Sandy; 2 children: Judy and Janine; Solicitor for Cumberland County Clerk of Courts from 1995 to 1998; from 1976 until 1978 he was a founding partner in the law firm Saidis, Guido, and Masland.

Masland, Albert H.

Albert H. Masland is a native to Carlisle and a graduate of Dickinson College and the Dickinson School of Law. After a few years of private practice, he served as part-time assistant district attorney from 1985-1992. He served as a state representative from 1992-2000, after which he held various administrative and legal positions with the Ridge, Schweiker and Rendell administrations. Masland was elected to the Court of Common Pleas in November 2009 and retained in 2019. 

Peck, Christylee L.

Christylee L. Peck is a graduate of Penn State University and the Dickinson School of Law.  She began her career in private practice, followed by years of service in the Lancaster County and Cumberland County District Attorney’s Offices.  She was elected to the Court of Common Pleas in November of 2011.  She is a former Board member of the Dickinson School of Law and enjoys teaching as an adjunct professor there in advocacy.

Brewbaker, Jessica E.

Jessica E. Brewbaker was born in 1977 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  She graduated from Boiling Springs High School in 1994, from Shippensburg University in 1997 (summa cum laude), and as the 2000 class valedictorian of the Dickinson School of Law.  She served as an attorney in the Cumberland County Public Defender Office from 2000-2005, when she was elected Magisterial District Judge for the Carlisle Borough.  Brewbaker continued to serve as Carlisle’s Magisterial District Judge until the end of 2015.   Additionally, Brewbaker worked for the law office of Michael L. Bangs as a legal researcher and writer from 2007-2015, and as an associate attorney with Turo Robinson Attorneys at Law from 2011-2015.  She was elected to the Court of Common Pleas in November, 2015.  

Smith, Matthew P.

Matthew P. Smith was born in 1972 and attended The Hill School in Pottstown, Pennsylvania and graduated from Dickinson College in 1995 with a B.A. in Policy Studies.  Thereafter, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army and served four years active duty at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.  Smith then transitioned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard while attending law School.  He graduated from Dickinson School of Law/Pennsylvania State University in 2002.  From 2002 to 2019 he served in the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office and acted in various capacities to include Acting District Attorney, First Assistant District Attorney, and Chiefs and Trial and Appellate Divisions.  In his military capacity, he has deployed oversees three times to Nicaragua, Iraq, and Kuwait with temporary duty in The United States Embassy in Kuwait.  He was elected to the Court of Common Pleas in 2019 and currently serves as the State Judge Advocate for the Pennsylvania National Guard.

Hyams, Carrie E.

Carrie E. Hyams was born in 1975, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  She graduated from Manheim Central High School, 1994; Elizabethtown College, (B.A.), 1998; Temple University (M.S.W), 2001 and Widener University School of Law (J.D.), (cum laude), 2005.  Hyams entered private practice in 2005 and worked for the law firm of Thomas, Thomas & Hafer, LLP ("TT&H"), where she became a partner.  Hyams continued to work with TT&H until ultimately taking the bench.  During her law career Hyams served as a Solicitor for Dauphin County Children and Youth Services from 2008-2012.  She was elected judge, Court of Common Pleas, November, 2019.

Sibert, Michelle H.

Michelle H. Sibert was born in 1973 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania.  After graduating from Moravian College in 1995 (cum laude), she attended The Dickinson School of Law, graduating in 1998.  She dedicated her career to serving the citizens of Cumberland County while in the District Attorney’s Office from 1999 through 2021.  During her tenure, she acted in various capacities to include First Assistant District Attorney, Chief of Appeals, and Director of Victim Services.  She was elected to the Court of Common Pleas in November of 2021.