6
From The
Bench
June
2015
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Court Community Service Helping Residents
What happens if someone is
sentenced to perform community
service, but doesn’t know where
to offer their skills?
Many are referred to Court
Community Service, a not-forprofit agency that arranges such
work for adult offenders referred.
Supervised work crews assist low
income and disabled seniors in
Cleveland who are referred by the
City's Department of Aging.
CCS workers mow lawns for more
than 700 elderly homeowners. In
addition, they also provide leaf
raking and snow shoveling for
seniors as well.
“Your support makes this and our
many other programs possible. In
addition, hundreds of local
charitable agencies also are
helped by community service
sentencing,” says Executive
Director Paul J. Klodor.
Klodor is asking that the Court
pass along the word that referrals
are needed.
IN THIS ISSUE!
Judge Donnelly
Honored by CMBA
Page #2
Lawyers' Fund for Client
Protection Pages #4
“It’s a “win-win” alternative for
the Court and our community
that teaches responsible
behavior, makes productive use
of one’s idle time, and
encourages empathy for those in
need,“ Klodor adds.
(Continued on page 3)
Happy 800th Birthday
Magna Carta Page #4
July Birthdays! Page #5
FROM THE BENCH | Issue # 6
Judge Donnelly
Honored By CMBA
Judge Michael P. Donnelly is the
2015 winner of the Honorable
William K. Thomas
Professionalism Award from the
Cleveland Metropolitan Bar
Association.
Judge Donnelly was given his
award at the 8th Annual Meeting
of the CMBA on Friday, June 5.
2
series of interactive continuing
legal education programs on
professionalism that are being
widely lauded by the participants
as the finest CLE programs on
professionalism they have ever
attended. He serves as Chairman
of the Cuyahoga County
Common Pleas Court’s Civil Rules
Committee and as a trustee for
the Ohio Common Pleas Judges
Association and the Cleveland
Metropolitan Bar Association.
The Professionalism Award
recognizes an individual’s
contributions of ethical and
professional conduct in the legal
profession and emphasizes the
profession's commitment to the
cause of legal professionalism.
The Professionalism Award is
annually awarded to a lawyer or
judge who has significantly
contributed to the enhancement
of professionalism in the Greater
Cleveland legal community by
exemplifying the goals of the
Ohio Supreme Court's "A
Lawyer's Creed" and "A Lawyer's
Aspirational Ideals" and by
furthering the ideals expressed in
the mission of the CMBA.
Among his many
accomplishments, Judge
Donnelly has served on and
chaired the Supreme Court of
Ohio’s Commission on
Professionalism and also
participated in a national two
year leadership and management
initiative after being identified as
a “Justice System Leader of
Tomorrow.” With the CMBA, he
has co-chaired the Task Force on
Civility & Professionalism and
spearheaded the creation of a
Judge Sheehan Sworn
In As CMBA Trustee
Judge Brendan J. Sheehan was
among six new trustees for the
Cleveland Metropolitan Bar
Association to be sworn in at the
8th Annual Meeting on Friday,
June 5.
The CMBA is a nonprofit
organization that operates as a
center for legal professionalism in
the region, promoting the highest
ethical and professional
standards.
Hard Time In Slavic
Village
On January 17, 2014, Judge
Richard McMonagle let Blaine
Murphy out of prison after eight
months. The catch? The 42-yearold had to complete 3,000 hours
of community service and pay the
$250,000 in restitution he still
owed.
Judge McMonagle sentenced
Murphy to live in a Slavic Village
home he’d flipped. Murphy had
admitted to signing fake names
to the deeds of 10 Cleveland-area
homes, among hundreds he’d
bought and sold in the area.
Those actions led to further decay
in an already blighted area.
Judge McMonagle is one of the
key players in Plain Dealer
Reporter Rachel Dissell’s series
“Hard Time In Slavic Village.”
Click here to read the series.
Above: Murphy meets with Judge McMonagle and
others. Below: Murphy walks through an illegal dump in
Slavic Village. PD photos by Lisa DeJong.
FROM THE BENCH | Issue # 6
CCS Services (Cont)
“We have placement
opportunities for a full range of
individuals and can accommodate
health issues, work and school
schedules, and offer a wide
variety of work assignments,”
says Klodor.
A Judge may choose to place an
offender in this community
service program. Regardless of
past training or education,
offenders are assigned tasks
working under close supervision.
Court referrals comprise a wide
spectrum of men and women of
all ages, talents, and job
capabilities. Some have no skill
sets and have never held a steady
job, while others may have senior
management and academic
experiences. Some may be
physically or age-disabled. And
still others may possess special
craft abilities as cabinet-makers,
electricians, or computer
programmers.
CCS evaluates and matches, to
the extent possible, each referral
to the needs of a wide range of
agencies. Once the offender is
assigned, CCS provides the
Judges with in-depth monitoring
and documentation. Its
centralized data system tracks
the referrals' activities while
detailing number of hours
worked, variations in
performance, and other pertinent
information for the Judges'
review.
Referrals are placed in more than
300 not-for-profit and
government agencies available
throughout the County, including
3
housing programs, hunger
centers, churches, thrift stores,
and social service organizations.
Their diverse community service
activities range from litter
collection, landscaping,
maintenance, painting, and
clerical tasks to professional
activities such as tutoring and
data entry.
According to the CCS website,
more than 400 not-for-profit and
government agencies in Greater
Cleveland have obtained millions
of uncompensated person-hours
to enhance their range of service
activities since 1985.
Judge Nancy Margaret
Russo Recognized
Judge Nancy Margaret Russo
was given an Outstanding
Judge/Courageous Woman
Award by the group Standing
Ovation.
The community group is made up
of area women, who also selected
Gloria James (LeBron’s Mom) to
be honored.
“I have received many awards in
my career, but I have to tell you
that being honored by these
small community groups means
the world to me,” says Judge
Russo. “Other people like the
glitz and glamour, but I prefer the
recognition from the people in
the trenches and those most
affected by our work.”
Judge Russo also spoke at a CLE
event about Re-Entry Court on
Friday, June 12, for the West
Shore Bar Association.
Judge Russo took several of the
docket's clients with her to speak
to attorneys about re-entry
challenges and possibilities.
"The clients do a great job of
talking about the program and
how it affects their lives," says
Judge Russo. "They are our
Court's best ambassadors!"
FROM THE BENCH | Issue # 6
4
Lawyers' Fund for
Client Protection
Local Author Discusses
"January 1973"
800th Anniversary of
the Magna Carta
Every other year, Ohio attorneys
are assessed a $350 fee by the
Ohio Supreme Court Lawyers'
Fund for Client Protection.
Is it possible to pinpoint one
month in time as a moment that
changed the world?
Area jurists, scholars, students
and civil liberties enthusiasts
marked the 800th anniversary of
the signing of the Magna Carta on
June 15 in the old Court House.
So what is the money used for?
Judge John J. Russo currently
chairs the fund, which is overseen
by a seven-member board made
up of lawyers and civilians.
"Basically, it's our job to help
reimburse people who may have
been wronged by attorneys," says
Judge Russo.
This could include people who've
been cheated by their lawyers or
even people who paid a lawyer
who passed away before their
case was complete.
In fiscal year 2014, the board
reimbursed a total of 125 clients
for roughly $780,000 for the
conduct of 40 lawyers.
At their quarterly meeting June 5
in Cleveland, the board approved
a total of $189,000 to five former
clients of Shaker Heights attorney
Paul Kaufman. It was partial
reimbursement for settlement
money the attorney failed to pass
on to them.
Click here for a Plain Dealer
article about the fund.
You can bet that Cleveland
Attorney James Robenalt circled
January 1973 on his calendar. He
recently published the book
"January 1973: Watergate, Roe v.
Wade, Vietnam, and the Month
That Changed America Forever".
In the span of thirty-one days, the
Watergate burglars went on trial,
the Nixon administration
negotiated an end to the Vietnam
War, the Supreme Court issued
its decision in Roe v. Wade,
Lyndon Johnson died in Texas
(and Harry Truman passed away
just a month earlier), and Richard
Nixon was sworn in for his second
term. The events had unlikely
links and each worked along with
the others to create a time of
immense transformation.
On June 11, Robenalt talked
about the book in front of a
packed courtroom 22-c, hosted
by Judge Brendan Sheehan.
The 2nd floor of the 103 year-old
Court House is home to a large
mural entitled “Signing of the
Magna Carta”, created by Sir
Frank Brangwyn (circa 1912). The
Magna Carta had significant
influence on our own American
Declaration of Independence, the
U.S. Constitution, the U.S. Bill of
Rights and American
jurisprudence.
The event, which featured Judge
Nancy A. Fuerst, (below) was cosponsored by the ClevelandMarshall College of Law, the
Cleveland Metropolitan Bar
Association, the Cleveland Law
Library, Cuyahoga County Courts
and the Cuyahoga County
Archives/Public Works.
FROM THE BENCH | Issue # 6
2014 Annual Report
5
July
Birthdays!
Judges
Joseph Russo
Benjamin Goodwin
Michael Jackson
Cheryl Russell
Shannon Gallagher
Jacqueline Cheatwood
Administration
Andrea Kinast
Arbitration
The Cuyahoga County Common
Pleas Court Annual Report has
been posted on line.
Included is the Court's newly
approved mission statement: The
mission of the Court is to provide
a forum for the fair, impartial
and timely resolution of civil and
criminal cases.
Among the comments made by
Judge John J. Russo in his open
letter were, "I could not be more
proud of the 500 or so women
and men whose efforts allow our
Court to operate and perform at
outstanding levels."
Judge Russo also added, "As a
Court, or corporation, our goal
should be to continue looking for
ways to improve. To that end, we
will continue to strive for
excellence and accountability. We
proudly serve the people of
Cuyahoga County and owe them
nothing less than our best."
Click here to review the
Annual Report!
Probation
Jennifer Vargics
Bailiffs
Jean Presby
Jessica Lane
John Burens
Joseph Arnett
Kathleen Joyce
Brad Lamb
Kelli Burton Bartko
Laura DePompei
Michael Williams
Court Reporters
Monique Moore
Angela Cudo
Omer Farhat
Gregory Koterba
Reynaldo Feliciano
Kathleen DiNovo
Ricardo Sanders
Luann Cawley
Sean Kincaid
Marguerite Phillips
Timothy McNally
Maureen Povinelli
Timothy Fratena
Criminal Records
Debaniece Maddox
Gregory Burger
Ronald Borchert
Foreclosure
Carol Weiss
Thomas Vozar
Psy Clinic
Michael Aronoff
Staff Attorney
Kristen Sobieski
Lori Anne Dyke
TASC
Ronda Blaney