Judge Evans wants recusal for retirement



Evans
By Joe Gorman
and David Skolnick
YOUNGSTOWN
Judge James Evans says he wants to recuse himself from the 2010 death-penalty case of two men accused of murdering a real-estate agent because he plans to retire.
In a brief judgment entry filed Thursday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, Judge Evans set Sept. 1 as his retirement date and as a reason he will not be able to hear the case against Robert Brooks, 29, and Grant Cooper, 25. Each could be put to death if convicted of the Sept. 20, 2010, murder of 67-year-old Vivian Martin at a house she was showing in the 3600 block of Nelson Avenue.
The home also was set on fire to cover up the crime, police say. The men were indicted for the crime in October 2010 but have yet to come to trial. They have been in the county jail since their arrests a few days after Martin was killed.
Judge Evans, who couldn’t be reached Thursday by The Vindicator to comment, had filed an entry late Friday declaring his desire to recuse himself from the case, but he needed to file a new one because the original entry did not specify why. Rules governing the courts say a reason must be given.
Judge Lou D’Apolito, the administrative judge for common pleas court, affirmed the entry filed Thursday.
Judge D’Apolito said he is not sure if a visiting judge has to come in to hear the case or if it can be assigned to one of the remaining judges at the court.
Judge D’Apolito said he has reached out to the state Supreme Court for guidance on the issue. He said what he is concerned about is making sure whichever judge is assigned the case stays on until it is completed and finishes in a reasonable time.
“I want continuity regarding this trial,” Judge D’Apolito said. “I want [whoever] takes it over to be able to finish it in a timely fashion.”
Martin’s family and friends have been frustrated that it has taken so long for the case to come to trial.
Judge D’Apolito said he will meet with lawyers for both defendants and prosecutors next week to go over where the case is now and try to get a tentative schedule in place. Upcoming pretrials set for today and Tuesday before Judge Evans will not occur.
Meanwhile, the seat of Judge Evans, a Democrat, will be up for grabs in the Nov. 4 general election.
Because his retirement date is more than 40 days before that election, candidates will be permitted to run for his seat this year, according to the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office. The judge is leaving 64 days before the general election.
Democratic and Republican precinct committee members would vote on their respective party nominees for Judge Evans’ seat. The winner of the general election would serve the remainder of Judge Evans’ term, which expires Dec. 31, 2016.
The parties would have to act relatively fast after the judge’s Sept. 1 resignation as boards of elections must have military and overseas ballots done by Sept. 20.
“We’ll be taking care of this during the first part of September,” said county Democratic Party Chairman David Betras. “People interested [in succeeding Judge Evans] should get in touch with me and precinct committee people as there will be a short window to find a replacement.”
Also, Gov. John Kasich, a Republican, has the power to appoint a replacement for Judge Evans. That person would serve until the certification of the Nov. 4 general election under state law.
“We’ll consult with the governor’s office first to see how we proceed,” said county Republican Party Chairman Mark Munroe.
In filing judicial vacancies, the local Republican Party screens interested applicants and recommends three finalists to the governor, who almost always selects someone from those three.
That gives the person appointed by the governor the power of incumbency even if it’s only for a short period of time.
The county Republican Party likely will seek replacements and screen applicants to succeed Judge Evans before his Sept. 1 retirement date, Munroe said.
“We’re interested in judicial races,” he said. “I just need to take a little bit of time to research how we proceed.”
The county board of elections — of which Munroe is chairman and Betras is vice chairman — would need to work out a schedule to determine a deadline for the political parties to choose their nominees for the judicial seat.
Also, those wanting to run as independent candidates have the opportunity to run if they can collect at least 750 valid signatures, according to state law.
This last happened in Mahoning County in 2004 with the retirement of Robert Lisotto as a common pleas court judge.
Then-Gov. Bob Taft, a Republican, appointed Maureen Sweeney, also a Republican, to Lisotto’s unexpired term about three weeks after the judge retired. Judge Sweeney, chosen by Republican precinct committee members as their nominee, defeated Youngstown Municipal Court Judge Elizabeth A. Kobly, appointed by Democratic precinct committee members, in the November general election and still has that seat.