Cuyahoga Co. judge pleads not guilty to assaulting wife

Associated Press

CLEVELAND

A Cuyahoga County judge accused of violently assaulting his wife while they were driving in a vehicle has pleaded not guilty to eight counts.

Forty-seven-year-old Lance Mason is charged with felonious assault, kidnapping, child endangering and domestic violence. He was arraigned Friday and is free on bond, with trial set for August.

A message seeking a comment was left for his attorney, Fernando Mack.

Authorities say Mason was arrested Aug. 2 after his wife told a 911 dispatcher that she’d been assaulted and tossed from a car and that he drove off with their two small children. Police say she was treated for a broken bone, bites and cuts.

Mason, a Democrat, was appointed as a common- pleas judge in 2008 and elected to a six-year term in 2010.