Jarrod B Skinner

Question 1

List your judicial experience (courts and years)

2018 - present: Franklin County Municipal Court Judge

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Question 2

What non-judicial legal experience qualifies you to be a judge?

Before being elected in 2017, I served as a Prosecutor for the City of Columbus from 2006 to 2017. In this role, I prosecuted thousands of cases in Municipal Court, where I litigated approximately 35 jury trials as first chair, approximately 125 court trials, conducted numerous motion hearings regarding constitutional issues and supervised and assisted law clerks.

I served as Environmental Prosecutor two years, prosecuting and convicting animal abusers and slumlords.

Currently, I serve as Chair of the Technology and as Co-Chair of the Personnel Committee at the Franklin County Municipal Court. I also serve as a member of the Finance and Budget Committee, Specialized Docket Committee and the Probation and Pre-trial Services Committee. I serve on the Supreme Court of Ohio Advisory Committee on Domestic Violence and am a board member of the Franklin County Law Library. Additionally, I currently serve on the Capital University Law School Alumni Association Board and the Columbus Bar Association Board of Governors. Previously I’ve served on the African American Law Alumni Board at Capital University Law School.

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Question 3

Why are you running for this particular court seat?

My greatest accomplishment as a judge is presiding over a courtroom that values community safety, restorative justice and respects everyone who enters.  In January 2018, during my swearing in ceremony, I pledged that regardless of how many cases I preside over, I will always treat every person as an individual and not a case number.  As a judge, I have maintained that pledge and will continue to do so if I have the honor to continue my service.

In addition to presiding over my regular docket, the judges of Municipal Court have selected me to preside over the Military and Veterans Services Specialty (MAVS) docket. This docket implements individualized plans that help veterans with housing, mental health services and alcohol and drug counseling.  It is an intense program where justice system-involved veterans meet with our staff on a weekly basis and we help them overcome their substance abuse or mental health struggles.

I am also the chair of the Technology department in Municipal Court, where we have made dramatic technological improvements over the last three years.  I lead a team of dedicated court employees that implemented video arraignments, which dramatically changed how the court system manages criminal arraignments.  We also now have our own court IT team that has created a new website and are currently working toward a paperless courthouse.  All these improvements will bring the courthouse into the digital era, thus having a positive impact on how the Court serves the public.

Lastly, I am a huge supporter of the Franklin County Municipal Court Self-Help Center. Over the years, the Self-Help Center has held expungement clinics throughout Franklin County.  As judge, I was able to waive outstanding fines and costs which prohibited people from applying for expungements.

Being able to have an honest conversation, listening to legal arguments and not taking it personally as well as keeping my composure in a stressful environment are all fundamental traits of being a successful judge in Franklin County Municipal Court. Despite the frantic and sometimes chaotic environment, the citizens of Franklin County deserve a judge who can handle the stress and who also values the time and effort of all attorneys, defendants and victims.

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