MAHONING COUNTY Candidate alleges ad is false

Judge Krichbaum said he'll withdraw the ad if it's proved to be untrue.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A candidate for judge of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court says a TV ad being run by Judge R. Scott Krichbaum is false.
Atty. James Callen, who is running against Judge Krichbaum in Tuesday's general election, asked Friday that the TV spot be pulled.
Judge Krichbaum said he'll do just that, as soon as Callen provides proof the ad is wrong.
Commercial
At issue is a campaign commercial for Judge Krichbaum which states that Callen, executive director of Northeast Ohio Legal Services, has never tried a case in common pleas court.
Callen said that's not true.
Judge Krichbaum said his research indicates Callen has never tried a common pleas case in Mahoning County.
Callen said he has tried common pleas cases but would not say whether it was in Mahoning or some other county. He also would not say how many cases he's tried.
He said he'll file a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission, though he was not sure whether there would be time to do so before the election.
Callen also said he asked local TV stations to stop running the ad, regardless of whether Judge Krichbaum tells them to do so.
"If he can provide proof that he has tried a case in common pleas court sometime in his legal career, then I will withdraw the ad," the judge said.
bjackson@vindy.com