Supreme Court delays judge’s jail sentence

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

A suspended juvenile court judge does not have to report to jail Monday to serve a six-month sentence after her conviction for unlawful interest in a public contract, the Ohio Supreme Court said Friday in delaying the sentence while the judge appeals.

The court’s 4-3 decision followed rulings by two lower courts rejecting Judge Tracie Hunter’s request to delay her sentence.

The ruling was “absolute vindication” and a signal that Hunter will successfully fight her conviction down the road, her attorney, Clyde Bennett, said Friday. The Supreme Court was the first to look at Hunter’s case “fairly and objectively” and not politically, Bennett said.

“I’m convinced that because of this stay by the Ohio Supreme Court that Judge Hunter will not serve one day in jail because her conviction is going to be reversed on appeal,” he said.

Messages were left for the Attorney General’s Office, which represented Hamilton County in the criminal case against Hunter.