Former judge Wanda Jones (pictured) is chosen by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine to fill vacant common pleas judge seat as DeWine fills 3 vacant common pleas judge seats in Cuyahoga County, one appellate court seat in the county, and one vacant municipal court seat in Garfield Heights....Jones is the only Black appointed as to these recent judicial appointments in Cuyahoga County, which includes Cleveland, by Ohio's Republican governor....By Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, Ohio's Black digital news leader
(www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com)
CLEVELAND, Ohio-Ohio Gov Mike DeWine, a Republican running for reelection next year, has announced appointments to fill three vacancies on the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas bench after the deaths of Democratic judges Nancy McDonnell and Joseph D. Russo, and the upcoming retirement of Judge Dick Ambrose, a Republican and former Cleveland Browns football player-turned judge. The governor also filled the vacancy left by the death of 8th District Court of Appeals Judge Larry Jones Jr., who was a Black Democrat, as well as a municipal court seat in Garfield Heights left by the retirement of Judge Jennifer Weiler, a Democrat.
Only one of those five appointments is Black, and all of them are Republican.
Former common pleas judge Kenneth R. Callahan, a University Heights Republican who served on the common pleas bench in the 1990s, left for private practice in 2002, and lost a bid for election last year was chosen by DeWine to replace the late Judge McDonnell, who died in September of lung disease. Callahan spent 16 years as a Cuyahoga County Common Pleas judge more than a decade ago, and was best known for presiding over the 1995-1996 legal battles spurred by Art Modell’s move of the Browns to Baltimore. An 11th-hour deal, with the NFL promising a new Browns team to Cleveland
Former common pleas judge Wanda C. Jones, the only Black of the five appointments, was selected by DeWine to replace controversial judge Joe Russo, who died surprisingly in October. A Solon resident and a product of Cleveland's public schools, Jones was selected in 2018 by then governor John Kasich to fill the seat vacated when then-Common Pleas Judge Michael Donnelly was elected to the Ohio Supreme Court that year along with then 8th district Judge Melody Stewart, the first Black elected to the Ohio Supreme Court. But Jones lost her seat last year to Richard Bell in a hard fought election, Bell a former assistant county prosecutor. She will have to win election to the seat next year in order to serve out Russo's unexpired term, which ends in 2024.
Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court Magistrate Mark Majer was appointed by the governor to replace Judge Ambrose beginning in Jan. 3, 2022 and must win election next year to retain the seat.
DeWine tapped lawyer Cornelius O’Sullivan to replace Judge Larry Jones on 8th District Court of Appeals bench and will join the state appellate court bench in Cuyahoga County on Dec. 15. No relation to Wanda Jones, Judge Larry Jones, also a former Cleveland municipal court presiding and administrative judge, died unexpectedly in October. Sullivan will have to win the election in November of 2022 to keep the seat for the term that expires in 2027.
Finally, seasoned Brecksville assistant law director and city prosecutor Sergio DiGeronimo was appointed by DeWine to replace former Garfield Heights judge Jennifer Weiler, who retired in September.
Cuyahoga County includes Cleveland and is Ohio's second largest of 88 counties behind Franklin County, which includes Columbus, the state capital. It is a Democratic stronghold and is roughly 29 percent Black.
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