Dec. 7, 2009
Judicial Panel Accepting Applications to Fill Vacancy on Hamilton County Municipal Court
Applications to fill a vacancy on the Hamilton County Municipal Court are due by 5 p.m. Jan. 5 to the Ohio Judicial Appointments Recommendation Panel (OJARP).
The seat will become open on Dec. 31, due to the appointment of Judge Nadine Allen to the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas.
Applicants for the position must be a resident and registered elector of Hamilton County and not yet 70 years old on the day they begin their duties, as dictated by Ohio law. In addition, they must be admitted to practice law in Ohio and have maintained their legal license for six years before assuming the judicial post or served as a judge of a court of record in any jurisdiction in the United States.
Candidates must be available to interview in person on Jan. 15 in Columbus. Individual candidate times and interview locations will be determined at a later date.
To continue service in the position, the appointee must run in the November 2011 municipal election.
In the case of all judicial vacancies, applicants must follow the guidelines set forth by OJARP to ensure their eligibility for appointment.
Applications must be submitted directly to the judicial panel and will then be distributed to the at-large and regional panel members. Additional details about OJARP and the application process can be found on the OJARP Web site at www.ojarp.org.
All materials submitted by applicants for a judicial vacancy will be considered public record under Ohio law. Applicant communication with panel members must be directed to the entire panel; all attempts to contact or influence a panel member are prohibited. Applicant questions and concerns should be addressed to Kent Markus or Jeff Ruppert in the Governor’s Office at 614.466.3555.
Governor Strickland has selected the following individuals to serve on the regional panel for the current Hamilton County vacancy:
Jack Sherman, Jr. – retired U.S. Magistrate Judge and former Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge
John Eby –community activist and electrical engineer with PEDCO E&A Services, Inc.
Verna Williams – professor, University of Cincinnati College of Law
Brian Thomas – associate attorney at Graydon, Head and Ritchey and president, Black Lawyers Association of Cincinnati
Brigid Kelly – political director, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 75
David Mann – partner, Mann & Mann, LLC and former United States Congressman, Mayor of Cincinnati and Cincinnati council member
At-large panel members:
Marianna Brown Bettman (chair) - professor, University of Cincinnati College of Law; former judge, First District Court of Appeals
Doloris Learmonth – partner, Peck Shaffer and Williams LLP
John Kulewicz – attorney, Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease, LLP
Derric D. McDonald – patrol officer, Dayton Police Department
Betty Davis – president, Community Concepts, Inc.