CHARDON, Ohio — Geauga County Commissioners voted 2-1 against giving Juvenile Probate Court Judge Timothy J. Grendell $300,000 to help him fight disciplinary charges during their meeting Tuesday morning.
Grendell requested the money from commissioners last fall after the Ohio Professional Board of Conduct recommended Grendell be suspended from the bench for 18 months.
Grendell said he would use the money to pay attorneys who represented him during disciplinary hearings last spring and to hire attorneys for his hearing before the Supreme Court of Ohio, which is scheduled for Feb. 13.
After his request, commissioners initially tabled making a decision so they could explore whether they could - or should - give Grendell money to fight the board's recommendation.
During this morning's meeting, Commissioner Carolyn Brakey, who voted against subsidizing Grendell's legal fees, said, "I think it sets a dangerous precedent for taxpayers to be subsidizing elected officials wrongdoing."
Among other charges, the board found Grendell "engaged in professional misconduct" in a case involving two teenage brothers in June 2020.
I revealed how Grendell jailed Carson and Conner Glasier, then 15 and 13, for three nights at the Portage-Geauga County Juvenile Detention Center after they refused parental visitation with their estranged father.
Their mother, Stacy Hartman, attended the commissioner's meeting last fall after she learned about Grendell's request.
"I'm furious about it," she told us. "He shouldn't be allowed to have taxpayer dollars to pay for his mistakes."
The board found Grendell's claim that detaining the boys was "in their best interest" was "patently facetious" and "contrary to law."
The board also found Grendell engaged in misconduct during an ongoing dispute with Geauga County Auditor Chuck Walder and other county officials about his court's bills and expenses.
Additionally, the board determined Grendell violated Ohio's code of judicial conduct when he testified in support of legislation that was introduced by his wife, former Ohio Rep. Diane Grendell, in 2020 about COVID-19 statistics.
Judge Grendell's response
Below is Grendell's statement after the board recommended his suspension:
"I respectfully disagree with the decision. Over four (4) years ago, I temporarily placed two juveniles in temporary custody for being unruly. The Ohio statute and governing 11th District Appellate Court’s rulings specifically permitted such placement. Then, I sent the case to Diversion per the Juvenile Rules. All of my decisions were based on recommendations of the Domestic Relations Court’s appointed mental health expert, that letting the boys terminate their relationship with their father would cause them permanent psychological harm. When the older boy turned 18, he moved out of his mother’s house and moved in with his dad. Unfortunately, he died in a motorcycle accident before the hearing. None of my decisions were appealed or reversed by the appellate court. No attorney for the parties accused me of bias or lack of impartiality and no one filed to have me disqualified while the case was pending.
