Maureen O'Connor
Chief Justice
Ohio Supreme Court
PRESENTATION TOPIC: "Making a Good System Even Better: Improvements to the Judicial Branch of Government"
Born in the nation's capital, but raised in Strongsville and Parma, Maureen O'Connor's November 2010 election as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Ohio is her latest achievement in a long career of public service. Following her previous seven years on the Court, Chief Justice O'Connor's latest election victory makes her Ohio's first female Chief Justice and only the tenth Chief Justice in the history of the Court.
While gaining experience in practice as an attorney during the early 1980s, Justice O'Connor created a home for her family and her legal career in Northeast Ohio. Appointed a magistrate in Summit County in 1985, she served in that capacity until becoming a common pleas court judge in 1993. As a busy trial judge, Justice O'Connor was selected by her peers to serve as the administrative judge - a testament to her ability to build coalitions and maintain collegiality while administering to the business of the courts.
But Justice O'Connor felt compelled to return to work on the front lines of protecting the public. She became the Summit County prosecuting attorney in 1995, aggressively prosecuting repeat offenders, violent criminals and public officials who committed ethical violations or improprieties. She was recognized for her work on behalf of crime victims, and remains proud of awards bestowed on her by Mothers Against Drunk Driving and Cleveland State University. As prosecutor, Justice O'Connor also lobbied the General Assembly for tougher rape laws and mandatory jail time for gang-related offenses. Successful in her undertakings, she set her sights on more difficult challenges.
In 1998, Ohioans elected Justice O'Connor as their lieutenant governor - the second-highest official in the state. She quickly became the governor's chief advisor on criminal-justice issues, serving as director of the Ohio Department of Public Safety, and as chair of Ohio's Security Task Force and the State Building Security Review Committee. Justice O'Connor's experiences in law enforcement proved invaluable, particularly in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, when she led the state in its response to new threats of terrorism. Her leadership in this area garnered the attention and praise of the country's first homeland security director, Tom Ridge.
Like her previous election, Chief Justice O'Connor won election as Chief with more than 67 percent of the popular vote, nearly the same percentage earned in her 2008 general election victory. Her first statewide judicial election in 2002, in which she took more than 57 percent of the vote, made her the 148th Justice to the Court, the sixth woman to join the Court and gave the Court its first-ever female majority.
As a Supreme Court Justice, she devoted herself in recent years to educational initiatives for Ohio students and to matters of security, such as the Court's new Advisory Committee on Court Security & Emergency Preparedness, which she chairs. As Chief Justice, she will be responsible for overseeing the not only the operations of the Supreme Court itself, but also has general superintendence over all state courts.
Where & When
Date: Thursday, April 21
Time: 12:00 Noon
Location: Quaker Station, 135 South Broadway - Downtown Akron
Tickets: $20.00 per person
Order at www.akronroundtable.org
Luncheon Sponsored by the Lisle M. Buckingham Endowment Fund of the Akron Community Foundation
