Judicial Votes Count

With so much focus by the national media about next year’s presidential election, it might be easy to overlook the fact that there’s an election this year. 

The Nov. 3 ballot includes 56 municipal court judicial races in 29 Ohio counties. 

Unfortunately, many voters will not complete their ballot because they won’t cast a vote in the judicial races. A major reason cited for this drop-off in voting is because of a lack of information about the candidates running for judge. 

JudicialVotesCount.org is a new website designed to provide voters with the information they need to make an informed decision in judicial races. The candidates have provided details about their legal background and why they are running for the judgeship.

The website also contains valuable information about the important role of judges and the duties of courts at all levels in Ohio – something that teachers might find useful in their classroom instruction.

The website was developed by a partnership among Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor, the League of Women Voters of Ohio, the Ohio State Bar Association, the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron, the Ohio Newspaper Association, and the Ohio Association of Broadcasters.

Voters should consider adding JudicialVotesCount.org to their list of resources for future elections. It’s a good way to get quality information about judicial candidates.

A Focus on Families and Addiction

Ohio has 110 juvenile court judges who preside over some of the hardest decisions a judge has to make – those in cases of child abuse and neglect.

Many families who come before the judges are there because of problems that stem from addiction.

Juvenile court judges from 56 Ohio counties joined substance abuse treatment providers, child welfare advocates, and other community partners recently at a one-day symposium to discuss how parents and children in their communities are affected by addiction.

The Ohio Supreme Court, along with the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, and the Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities, assembled a group of community partners for the 2015 Judicial Symposium on Addiction and Child Welfare on June 23.

Each county team developed action plans to ensure that families receive treatment intervention and the judicial oversight, and support they need to continue their recovery.

Last year, common pleas court judges participated in a similar event.

A new video, “Let’s Treat it Together,” introduces an explanation of the science of addiction and the response of courts who are addressing a solution. Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor explains in the video how we all must work together on this problem. Let’s all join the chief justice in that call for action. The future of our children is at stake.

All in the Family

On December 30, I had the pleasure of administering the oath of office to my son, Josh, as he began a six-year term as a Toledo Municipal Court judge. It was a very proud moment for me to hear him report that he would “faithfully and impartially discharge and perform” his duties “so help me God.”

The Lanzinger family attends swearing-in ceremony
for Toledo Municipal Court Judge Joshua W. Lanzinger.

More than 28 years ago, I began my judicial career in the same court. Now, for the first time, a mother and son are serving together on judicial benches in Ohio.

But other duos of parents and children also exist throughout the state.

My colleague, Justice Terrence O’Donnell and his daughter, Colleen, now a common pleas judge, are among them.

What makes a child follow a parent as a judge? A new video featuring Justice O’Donnell’s daughter and my son has been produced for Court News Ohio. It can be viewed at http://www.ohiochannel.org/MediaLibrary/Media.aspx?fileId=141860.

Summer Recess is Over

For many Ohio schools, a new year has begun, or will soon. The Supreme Court of Ohio also has been on its summer recess — its break from hearing new cases. But the recess ends next week when we justices are to hear oral arguments in eight cases.

Courtroom of the Supreme Court of Ohio
at the Thomas J. Moyer
Ohio Judicial Center

We hear a variety of cases. Some come to us automatically and some are accepted as cases of  general or public interest.  Some have questions arising under the Ohio or U.S. Constitutions.  Others are cases in which two or more courts of appeals have issued conflicting opinions. From late August every year until June, oral arguments are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday mornings on the cases that the lawyers have briefed.

The lawyers for each side have 15 minutes to argue their positions. Each of the seven justices may ask questions at any time, and often a dynamic exchange occurs about the facts or law of the case being argued. The attorneys are signaled when they’re getting low on time: a yellow light signals that there are two minutes left, and a red light signals stop. The same morning after a case is argued, we deliberate and a justice is assigned to write the decision, in the form of an opinion, for the court. On average, an opinion is published within four to five months. 

 

I encourage you to watch streaming video of the arguments available through the Ohio Channel. It’s a great way to see your judicial system in action. You can then read the published opinion on our website, www.sc.ohio.gov.

How are Judges Like Umpires?

With spring training recently concluded -- are you ready for another analogy, sports fans?

Ohio’s Major League Baseball teams opened their seasons this week.  I have often thought that judges, especially those on the trial courts, are very like umpires who call the balls and strikes in ballparks across the nation.

Just like the umpire, the judge is a decider.  Trial judges decide all the time.  When parties are competing in court, one or the other may make a motion.  The judge decides whether to grant or overrule the motion.  At trial, a party can object to evidence.  The judge decides whether to admit or exclude it.  If a jury trial was waived, the judge may have to decide if a defendant is guilty or not guilty. There are many line calls for judges.

Even on the Supreme Court, we make calls as appellate judges.  For parties that ask us to review a case, we decide if it is the type of case that we should take in for review.  We decide if it has public or great general interest.  And after briefs and oral argument, we vote whether to affirm or reverse the earlier court’s judgment.

And just like an umpire, the judge must operate by the rule book.  Sometimes a decision has to be made quickly, like most of those made on the ball diamond.  And like the best umpires, the best judges try to be fair and impartial making their important decisions every day.