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News-Messenger - Fremont, Ohio – May 18, 2001 – Watchdog alleges theft by 9 judges
Watchdog alleges theft by 9 judges
May 18, 2001
By MICHAEL CULP
News-Messenger Columbus Bureau
Gannett News Service
COLUMBUS -- A retired Medina County judge admitted she billed the state for two days' work when she worked only one as a visiting judge.
Judge Judith Cross, a Medina resident, said the mistake was a clerical oversight and reimbursed the state $402 for the extra day's pay.
But judicial watchdog David Palmer says its theft. Palmer has filed more than 50 felony complaints of theft in Franklin County Municipal Court against Cross and eight other retired visiting judges, one of whom has worked in Sandusky County and two of whom have served in Ottawa County.
Palmer claims the judges were overcompensated for daily stipends, meals and lodging. Court dates of May 24 and May 30 have been set for the nine judges.
The criminal complaints filed by Palmer include two each against Judge June Rose Galvin, of Marblehead, and Judge Robert G. Wilson, of Bryan, and another 14 against Richard McQuade Jr., of Swanton. Both Wilson and McQuade have worked in Ottawa County as visiting judges. McQuade also has served in Sandusky County.
"I decided to expose them because I found it absolutely outrageous that these people can do this and sit in judgment of everybody else," said Palmer, of Powell.
Palmer's examples result from clerical mishaps, not fraud, said Douglas Stephens, director of judicial and court services at the Ohio Supreme Court, which appoints retired visiting judges.
"There are no judges, out of all of the ones that have been identified, who intentionally have double-billed because of crooked intent or malice," Stephens said.
At least four of the judges have reimbursed the state, he said.
Retired visiting judges travel the state to county courts that request them, often because the local judges have a conflict-of-interest in a case or face a large backlog.
The judges are to paid only for one days' work -- regardless of the number hours they put in that day or if they visited two or more counties.
Cross, for example, billed the state twice for the same day when she worked the morning of March 8, 2000, in Lorain County and then traveled to Huron County in the afternoon for another case.
Palmer also filed another charge against Cross for billing the state twice for working in Ashland and Cuyahoga counties on a single day -- June 28, 2000.
Palmer's accusation, Cross said, is wrong.
"My records show that I worked on the Ashland case on the 27th and I was in Cuyahoga on the 28th," she said. "When I talked to the Supreme Court, they thought someone read the records wrong."
Palmer also has alleged over-billings of $3,906 for McQuade, $804 for Galvin and $735 for Wilson.
Galvin could not be reached for comment.
A Columbus lawyer representing McQuade, Wilson and Judge Joseph Grigsby, of Marysville, shrugged off the criminal complaints against his clients.
"We've looked at this stuff, and there are some clerical errors, but there is no merit whatsoever in any overbilling," said Craig Wright, a former Supreme Court justice. "In other words, they got some dates wrong and we're correcting them."
But Palmer said juries should decide whether those judges, as well as the other six, had criminal intent.
Moreover, sloppy paperwork, he said, begs the question of whether these judges even should be appointed to serve.
"Are they entitled to retain their positions if they're this sloppy on details?" Palmer said. "Aren't people sitting in jail or losing lawsuits because of technicalities that were determined by a judge?"
Palmer said he became interested in the issue after 1994, when McQuade was assigned as a retired visiting judge in a case in which Palmer was involved. Palmer said he was appalled by McQuade's conduct. The retired judge, meanwhile, has said Palmer was upset with an unfavorable outcome.
In 1997, Palmer wrote to the Supreme Court about retired visiting judges being overcompensated by the state.
After receiving Palmer's letters, the Supreme Court examined the issue, Stephens said.
"We looked into it, and we found there was confusion surrounding the whole idea of billing, so we took immediate steps to correct it," Stephens said.
Billing the state twice for the same day is not illegal, but nevertheless against the practice of the Supreme Court, said Michael Grodhaus, Auditor of State Jim Petro's chief legal counsel, who talked to the Supreme Court about the issue in 1998.
Palmer has criticized Chief Justice Thomas Moyer, who assigns the judges, for essentially ignoring the problem.
Stephens disagrees. He also said the court has updated the computer system and worked on recording keeping procedures to make sure the problem doesn't persist.
"We're still working daily on different ways that we can stop it," he said. "The first step we took is to make it known in 1998 that the chief doesn't support double billing."
Palmer claims the judges were overcompensated for daily stipends, meals and lodging. Court dates of May 24 and May 30 have been set for the nine judges.
The criminal complaints filed by Palmer include two each against Judge June Rose Galvin of Marblehead, and Judge Robert G. Wilson of Bryan, and another 14 against Richard McQuade Jr. of Swanton. Both Wilson and McQuade have worked in Ottawa County as visiting judges. McQuade also has served in Sandusky County.
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