Ohio Judge Can’t Serve on Nonprofit Board if Company Helps Court

Ohio judges can’t sit on non-profit boards that provide court services, the state said.

The dueling commitments would violate legal and judicial ethics rules, the Ohio Board of Professional Conduct said Feb. 12.

In the scenario presented to the conduct panel, a nonprofit receives referrals from a municipal court judge for its “community re-entry program” for people charged with misdemeanors, the opinion said.

Participants complete community service assignments as an alternative to jail, and the program is funded through a grant contract between the corporation and the court’s funding authority, the opinion said. It requires a certain number of court ...