Scribd
Upload
6K views

Coontz Opinion On Council Appointments

The letter summarizes Ohio Revised Code Section 3.16 regarding the suspension and replacement of public officials charged with felonies. It notes that four Toledo city council members were suspended after being criminally charged in 2020. Two have since pleaded guilty and resigned, while another did not resign. The letter explains that under the code, a suspension ends when the official pleads guilty, creating a vacancy to be filled through normal processes. It concludes that the suspensions of the two council members who pleaded guilty have ended, ending the terms of their interim replacements according to the statute.

Uploaded by

Sarah McRitchie
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
6K views

Coontz Opinion On Council Appointments

The letter summarizes Ohio Revised Code Section 3.16 regarding the suspension and replacement of public officials charged with felonies. It notes that four Toledo city council members were suspended after being criminally charged in 2020. Two have since pleaded guilty and resigned, while another did not resign. The letter explains that under the code, a suspension ends when the official pleads guilty, creating a vacancy to be filled through normal processes. It concludes that the suspensions of the two council members who pleaded guilty have ended, ending the terms of their interim replacements according to the statute.

Uploaded by

Sarah McRitchie
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

Chief Counsel

Office 614-728-2035
Fax 877-588-5456

December 28, 2022

Mr. Dale Emch


Law Director, City of Toledo
One Government Center, Suite 2250
Toledo, Ohio 43604
VIA email to: [email protected]

RE: Ohio Revised Code Section 3.16 and Interim Replacement Officials

Dear Mr. Emch:

I am in receipt of your letter regarding the status of the City of Toledo district council members
who were appointed to serve on an interim basis pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 3.16. The
Ohio Attorney General’s Office has a limited involvement in the initiation of suspension
proceedings against public officials. I will work to respond to your inquiry insofar as the AGO’s
responsibilities are implicated, but I cannot offer any legal advice or opinions regarding the City
of Toledo Charter.

As you are aware, in June 2020 Toledo City Council members Tyson Riley, Larry Sykes, Yvonne
Harper and Gary Johnson were criminally charged in federal court for their alleged participation
in a scheme involving bribes for council votes. Shortly after they were charged, this office sent a
copy of the charging document to the Ohio Supreme Court with a request that the Chief Justice
institute suspension proceedings pursuant to R.C. 3.16. Broadly, that section provides that a special
commission of the Supreme Court may temporarily suspend from office a public official who is
charged in state or federal court with a felony that relates to the performance of that official’s
duties. A public official may contest the suspension or consent to it.

Riley, Sykes, Harper and Councilman Johnson individually consented to suspension from the
council while their respective criminal charges were pending. Once that happened the probate
judge of the Lucas County Common Pleas Court was required to appoint an “interim replacement
official” for each, but only for the duration of the suspension. R.C. 3.16(E)(4) (emphasis added).
There is nothing in R.C. 3.16 that makes interim replacements permanent or otherwise allows them
to serve beyond the period of suspension.

30 E. Broad St., 17th Floor | Columbus, Ohio | 43215


www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov
Recently, Riley, Sykes and Harper pleaded guilty to felonies in federal court. Riley and Harper
resigned from the council; Sykes did not. Councilman Johnson did not plead guilty, did not resign
and is set for trial in January 2023.

Insofar as Riley, Sykes and Harper are concerned, two questions arise: 1) When do their
suspensions end? 2) What happens to the interim replacements when they do? The statute provides
that a public official may not exercise any powers of the public office while suspended but still
retains the title and pay associated with it. That remains the case “until the public official pleads
guilty to or is found guilty of any felony” with which he or she is charged. R.C. 3.16(E)(1).

Stated differently, once the suspended public official pleads guilty to a felony, he or she no longer
holds the title of the office and cannot be paid for holding it. If the suspended officer no longer
holds title to the office, a logical conclusion is that it is vacant, regardless of whether the vacancy
results from a resignation or a guilty plea. Of course, there is a process for appointing a
replacement. The statute provides that, if the office of the suspended public official becomes vacant
during the suspension, “a public official shall be appointed or elected to fill such vacancy as
provided by law.” R.C. 3.16(G). I offer no opinions here as to what the law requires to fill those
vacancies.

Given that a person cannot be suspended from an office he or she no longer holds, it follows that
the suspension must end when the public official loses title to the office. And when the suspension
ends, so too does the term of the interim replacement — because the appointment is only “for the
duration of the suspension.” R.C. 3.16(E)(4). Revised Code Section 3.16 does not seem to speak
to — or require — a formal determination by the Ohio Supreme Court regarding the interim
replacement members. It seems to contemplate that the interim replacement’s appointment is
limited to the period of suspension, by operation of law. The normal process for filling a vacancy
on the council would then apply.

I appreciate you reaching out in light of our overlapping involvement in the suspension process.
This office no longer has a role in this particular suspension proceeding. Please feel free to contact
me should you have any questions or concerns regarding this letter.

Respectfully Yours,

Bridget C. Coontz

Bridget C. Coontz
Chief Counsel

You might also like