OHIO COURT Appeals judge to seek seat

Judge O'Neill will place limits on campaign contributions.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Judge William M. O'Neill of the Warren-based 11th District Court of Appeals will run for a two-year unexpired term on the Ohio Supreme Court next year.
Judge O'Neill, a Democrat, announced his candidacy Monday.
A screening committee will recommend candidates for the four Supreme Court seats up for election next year to the Ohio Democratic Party, which will then endorse those candidates for the four spots, said Dan Trevas, the party's spokesman. It is not known when the committee will make its recommendations.
As of Monday, Judge O'Neill is the only announced Democratic candidate running for the unexpired term, held by Justice Terrence O'Donnell, a Republican appointed about six months ago by the governor to fill a vacancy created when Justice Deborah Cook was appointed to a federal judicial seat.
Campaign finance
Judge O'Neill, 56, will place limits on the amount of donations he receives -- $10 from individuals, and $1,000 from organizations. The judge said he is doing that because he is critical of the current funding method of judicial campaigns.
He supports a plan to fund those races through a $10 surcharge on those who file the nearly three million lawsuits in the state each year, excluding those who are indigent.
"I believe the people of Ohio are tired of watching seats on the Supreme Court of Ohio being purchased much like you would purchase a seat on the New York Stock Exchange," Judge O'Neill said. "The time to change that practice is now, and the vehicle for change is my candidacy."
Career
Judge O'Neill was first elected to the appellate court in 1996, and then was re-elected last year. Judge O'Neill spent only $6,500 on the campaign.
The court includes Trumbull, Lake, Portage, Geauga and Ashtabula counties.
"It's time in my career to get to where I'm going, and that's the Supreme Court," Judge O'Neill said. "The timing is good with four openings. The entire nature of the Supreme Court will be redefined with this election. I think this election is the best time to change the court."
There are only two Democrats on the seven-member Supreme Court.
Before his 1996 election to the court of appeals, Judge O'Neill spent 12 years as an assistant Ohio attorney, and practiced law in Geneva.
skolnick@vindy.com