Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor
Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice wants legacy with judiciary, not with party
As Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor takes her leave from the state’s top court position, she takes with her a fierce loyalty to an independent judiciary and fervent belief that she couldn’t have done the job alone. What she’s boxing up with the trash is any desire for partisanship or politics. “You don’t […]
LaRose wants to make it harder for voters to amend constitution but evidence of a problem is lacking
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose denied that he wanted to block abortion protections or anti-gerrymandering measures when he announced that he wanted to hustle through a measure that would make it harder for voters to amend the Ohio Constitution. But he’s failed to point to a single amendment in the Constitution as an example […]
Ohio chief justice: ‘We do not have a Constitution that will end gerrymandering’
Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor said she plans to become a part of the anti-gerrymandering effort once she leaves office at the end of the year. In committing to her next steps after the her term-limited time as the head of the state’s highest court, she also acknowledged the failures that happened in […]
DeWine once said he’d let the courts decide. Now, maybe not so much
Just after he signed a bill dramatically restricting abortion on April 11, 2019, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine expressed great respect for the courts and the rule of law. But more than three years later — in a case involving Republican gerrymandering — DeWine’s staff seems to be saying he doesn’t have to listen to the […]
Ohio Supreme Court chief justice hears last oral arguments
With term limits signaling the end of her tenure as Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, Maureen O’Connor took time on Tuesday to reflect. “The Ohio Constitution is telling me it’s time to do something new,” O’Connor said. O’Connor and the rest of the supreme court justices heard arguments in three cases on Tuesday, […]
LaRose would ‘be fine with’ chief justice’s impeachment over redistricting rulings
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose on Friday said he “certainly wouldn’t oppose it” if the legislature impeached Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor over her joining in rulings rejecting GOP-generated maps for Congress and the legislature, according to a recording of a breakfast meeting with Union County Republicans. LaRose, who is not a […]
Ohio Supreme Court justices Kennedy and DeWine undermining judiciary with redistricting partisanship
Justice is supposed to be blind. But not in Ohio. Not when a pair of Ohio Supreme Court justices dropped all pretense of impartiality and objectivity in the super high stakes redistricting cases before the court that have utterly upended Ohio politics. Justice Sharon Kennedy and Justice Pat DeWine effectively removed their metaphorical blindfolds to […]
House GOP leader on Supreme Court impeachment: ‘All options are on the table’
A ranking House Republican left open the possibility of impeaching the chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, which this week rejected Republicans’ third proposed legislative redistricting map. During a private GOP caucus phone call Thursday, House Majority Leader Bill Seitz and Rep. Jon Cross voiced support for impeaching Justice Maureen O’Connor, according to a […]
Another question about DeWine conflicts in Ohio redistricting
Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat DeWine has said he doesn’t have a conflict sitting in judgment of a case involving a redistricting commission on which his father sits. That’s because the father, according to his son, is acting in only an official capacity. It’s a claim that some ethics experts have bluntly rejected. The claim […]
Experts: DeWine’s son, Medicaid director both have clear conflicts
(The original version of story misattributed a statement by Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat DeWine to a spokeswoman for the court, who does not speak for him. This version is updated.) The administration of Gov. Mike DeWine is making history, but perhaps for the wrong reasons. Two DeWine appointees have figured in what federal law […]
The race for Ohio Supreme Court chief justice is on
2022 race could prove complicated for Ohio Democrats At least two justices on the Ohio Supreme Court are eyeing the chief justice position and plan to campaign for the top judicial seat in 2022. Democrat Jennifer Brunner and Republican Patrick DeWine are planning to run for chief justice next year. These two, and potentially another […]
Extend eviction moratorium to slow covid spread, advocates say
Ohio’s local courts should stop eviction proceedings, a group that advocates for the poor said Tuesday. Not only are thousands of Ohioans going to be forced out of their homes in the dead of winter, the proceedings and the evictions will make the covid crisis worse, they say. The coronavirus pandemic has hit low-income Americans […]