Longtime Mahoning Co. deputy clerk of courts files for judge post

YOUNGSTOWN — Kathi McNabb Welsh of Boardman, Mahoning County chief deputy clerk of courts, became the fifth person to file nominating petitions for the county court position currently held by suspended Judge Diane Vettori.

Aug. 8 is the deadline to file nominating petitions for the seat.

Others who’ve filed petitions for the seat are A. Ross Douglass of Canfield, Matt Gambrel of Boardman, Christopher Sammarone of Canfield, and J.P. Morgan of Canfield.

McNabb Welsh is a former assistant prosecuting attorney for Mahoning County and Akron, and was the first woman elected president of the Mahoning County Bar Association.

In 2003, she was appointed and then subsequently elected to the Mahoning County Educational Service Center board and is serving her fourth term. She sits on the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center board and was an Eastern Gateway Community College trustee.

Judge Vettori faces charges of mail fraud, structuring cash deposits and making false statements to law-enforcement officers. She is prohibited by the Ohio Supreme Court from hearing cases while her case is pending.