Tim Grendell

Timothy J. Grendell (born April 17, 1953) is a Republican politician who serves as judge on the Geauga County Court of Common Pleas. He was a member of the Ohio Senate from 2005 to 2011, and of the Ohio House of Representatives from 2000 until 2004.

Tim Grendell
Member of the Ohio Senate
from the 18th district
In office
January 3, 2005 – September 20, 2011
Preceded byBob Gardner
Succeeded byJohn Eklund
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
from the 98th district
In office
January 3, 2001-December 31, 2004
Preceded byDiane Grendell
Succeeded byMatt Dolan
Personal details
Born (1953-04-17) April 17, 1953
Cleveland, Ohio
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Diane Grendell
ResidenceChesterland, Ohio
Alma materJohn Carroll University, Case Western Reserve University, University of Virginia
ProfessionAttorney

Education and career

Grendell received his JD from Case Western Reserve University School of Law and his LLM from the University of Virginia Law School. He was awarded a Bachelor’s Degree in History from John Carroll University and graduated from St. Ignatius High School. Grendell served in the United States Army from 1978 to 1983, and was assigned to the Judge Advocate General (JAG) Office for the 2nd Armored Division at Fort Hood, Texas.

With his wife, Diane Grendell, term limited from the House in 2000, he sought her position to replace her. He won a first term with 58.3% of the electorate. In 2002, Grendell won reelection with 69.7% of the vote against Democrat Meg Cacciacarro.[1]

Ohio Senate

After serving two terms in the Ohio House of Representatives, Grendell ran for the Ohio Senate in 2004, and won with 59.6% of the vote over Democrat John Hawkins.[2] He won reelection in 2008 unopposed. In the 128th General Assembly, Grendell was Chairman of the Ohio State Senate Judiciary and Criminal Justice Committee, Vice-Chairman of the State and Local Government and Veterans Affairs Committee, and a member of the Agriculture Committee, Environment and Natural Resources Committee, Correctional Institution Inspection Committee, and Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review.

In the 129th General Assembly, Grendell was a member of the committees on Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources; Government Oversight and Reform (as vice chairman); Judiciary-Criminal Justice (as chairman); and State and Local Government and Veteran's Affairs. He served on the Ohio Attorney General's Human Trafficking Commission.[3]

In September 2011, Grendell resigned from the Senate to become a judge of the Geauga County probate court.[4][5]

Judicial career

In September 2011 Grendell was appointed judge of the Geauga County Juvenille and Probate Court by the governor.[6] He was elected again to the position in November 2014.[7] During his time on the bench he has issued over 20,000 rulings with a reversal rate of less than .001 percent.[8] In 2012 he presided over the hearing to bind over alleged Chardon school shooter T.J. Lane for trial in adult court per Ohio law.[9] He is the creator of the award winning Good Deeds Program which is an effort to educate and assist Geauga County with probate planning for their real estate and vehicles.[10] He has been recognized by his peers both nationally and within the state of Ohio, having been named President of the Ohio Juvenile Judges in 2017[11] and to the National Committee of Probate Judges.[12]

Controversies

During his time as state senator, Grendell worked to oppose the Great Lakes Compact, water conservation standards intended to ensure a level economic playing field for water use throughout the eight Great Lakes states. With support from Republican and Democratically led states, the Compact garnered support from business and environmental interests alike. Yet Grendell made the puzzling argument that the Compact interfered with private property rights. The argument had little legal legitimacy, and instead worked to slow if not scuttle the policy.[13]

With two years left in his Senate term, Grendell waived them and ran for his former House of Representatives seat in order to avoid term limits. On November 2, 2010, he won back his former House seat, the 98th district, decisively. With the Senate then having to appoint someone to the remainder of Grendell's unexpired Senate term, it was rumored that Grendell's wife, Diane Grendell, was a possibility for appointment. Upon learning that she would not be appointed, Grendell decided to remain in the Senate. Soon after, The Plain Dealer and other state newspapers began questioning Grendell's motives and true agenda as a state legislator.[14]

In January 2015, Judge Grendell attempted to hold Geauga County Republican Party Chairwoman Nancy McArthur in contempt for expressing negative opinions about him, including private corospondence sharing " (her) opinion of him and that of others in his own party is that he is [sic] narcissist and mentally ill",[15] with a third party involved in a juvenile court case before the judge, but the Appellate Court intervened to stop his contempt of court proceedings.[16]

References
  1. Blackwell, Kenneth 2002 general election results (2002-11-07)
  2. Blackwell, Kenneth 2004 general election results Archived 2010-12-27 at the Wayback Machine (2004-11-02)
  3. Johnson, Alan (2011-07-19). "Human-trafficking panel restarted". Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2011-07-19.
  4. Guillen, Joe (2011-06-19). "Ohio Sen. Tim Grendell, who last year rejected his House seat, now wants to be a Geauga County judge". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 2011-06-20.
  5. Rusek, Joan (22 September 2011). "State Sen. Tim Grendell's seat will remain vacant until new 18th District lines are drawn". Cleveland.com. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
  6. "WKSU News: Grendell appointed as judge of Geauga County court". WKSU. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  7. "Results". boelections.co.geauga.oh.us. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  8. "Tim Grendell | Judicial Votes Count". Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  9. "Judge: Adult court trial for T.J. Lane, accused of Chardon High School killings". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  10. report, Staff. "Good Deeds Program is back in Geauga County". The News-Herald. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  11. report, Staff. "Judge Tim Grendell named new president of state juvenile court judges association". The News-Herald. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  12. editor@news-herald.com, Staff report. "Geauga Judge Tim Grendell named to national committee". The News-Herald. Retrieved 2020-03-08.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  13. "Grendell Urges Property Rights Activists To Oppose Great Lakes Compact". Pennsylvania Landowners Association. Archived from the original on 28 September 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  14. Grendell stays in Senate
  15. http://www.geaugamapleleaf.com/news/grendell-threatens-county-gop-chair-with-contempt/
  16. http://www.geaugamapleleaf.com/news/grendell-threatens-county-gop-chair-with-contempt/
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