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Judge Brown appointed to be chief justice on Supreme Court
By MARC KOVAC
COLUMBUS
Judge Eric Brown of Franklin County Probate Court will become the next chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, taking the seat left vacant by the unexpected death of Thomas Moyer earlier this month.
Judge Brown, a Democrat who is running for chief justice in November, was appointed to the bench Wednesday by Gov. Ted Strickland. He will assume his new post May 3.
“Thank you for the opportunity to continue the legacy of Chief Justice Moyer in making sure that courts are open, courts are accessible, that the court is held with high regard, to make sure that all persons who come to the court will be respected and treated courteously, to make sure that all people have been heard,” Judge Brown said after the announcement.
He has served in Franklin County Common Pleas Court’s probate division for more than a year and was part of the general division for about four years before that. He was an assistant attorney general from 1992-2002 and led that office’s tobacco lawsuit efforts, including work on the $10 billion-plus tobacco settlement.
Judge Brown and his wife, Marilyn, a Franklin County commissioner who had a brief run last year for secretary of state, have two children and three grandchildren.
Strickland and Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern endorsed Judge Brown for chief justice in early February.
The selection brought criticism from Republicans, however, who said Strickland had based the decision on politics, attempting to give Judge Brown a leg up in his race against Republican Maureen O’Connor, the top vote-getter among all candidates in the 2008 general election.