Panel chooses three finalists for court seat

COLUMBUS — Two members of the Mahoning County prosecutor’s office and one common pleas magistrate are finalists for an open seat at the county common pleas court.

The names of Robert Bush, Timothy Franken and Timothy Welsh were forwarded Friday by the Ohio Judicial Appointments Recommendation Panel to Gov. Ted Strickland, according to Keith Dailey, the governor’s spokesman.

The governor is expected to name a replacement next week.

Bush, chief of criminal division for the county prosecutor office , is a former Youngstown police chief and city law director and a Youngstown Board of Education member. Bush unsuccessfully ran for Youngstown mayor in 2005.

Franken, chief trial counsel for the county prosecutor office, has unsuccessfully run for a judicial seat three times — a 7th District Court of Appeals position in 1996 and 2006 and once for a common pleas post in 2002.

Welsh is a magistrate for Judge R. Scott Krichbaum.

The seat was vacated by retired Judge Maureen Cronin, whose term stretches through January 2009. The appointee and anyone else interested in seat thereafter will have to seek election in November 2008.

Panel members who considered applicants were Miriam Ocasio, attorney, solo practitioner; Joseph Caruso, executive director, Burdman Group Inc.; Ed Reese, owner, EDM Management; Jaladah Aslam, staff representative, AFSCME Ohio Council 8; Richard White, attorney, White and Briachlaw firm; and James Burgham, business manager, IBEW Local 64.