Supreme Court Hopeful Bill O'Neill Labeled 'A Knucklehead' By Ohio Senate Dem Leader: Insults Fly In Statewide Judicial Primary

Dem Primary Becoming Bareknuckled Brawl

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- State Sen. Eric Kearney, a Cincinnati lawyer sworn in today as the chamber's top Democrat, has come out fighting for his friend and political ally, Hamilton County Municipal Court Judge Fanon Rucker.   Kearney told a rally of Cincinnati area Democrats last night that Rucker's opponent in the March 6 primary is "a knucklehead" whose lack of political and campaign wisdom "will turn a seat over to the Republicans" on the Ohio Supreme Court.  Kearney didn't identify the knucklehead by name (he did use the term twice).  But he was talking about William O'Neill, a Cleveland area Democrat who jumped into the race last month.

Sen. Eric Kearney

Although he's been out of office for several years, O'Neill is a former state appeals court judge who was decorated for service in Vietnam during the war.  So there is a generation gap (Rucker was born just as the war was ending) though not so much a geography gap because Rucker has gotten traction upstate.  He has snagged the Ohio Democratic Party endorsement, along with backing from the county parties in Cleveland and Youngstown.  Rucker was in the Senate chamber today to give Kearney the oath of office as minority leader -- the judge clearly has friends in high places.

So what exactly is a knucklehead?  Webster's New World Dictionary says it is a slang expression for "a stupid person; fool."  Senate leader Kearney was particularly upset that O'Neill won't accept donations to finance his campaign, which means he's running a futile effort, that he's unilaterally disarmed.  Said Kearney: "This man Fanon Rucker was born to be a Supreme Court Justice . . He's got an opponent, a knucklehead, and he's got to get past this primary."


Rucker, 40, said he got into the race last year expecting that he could concentrate on the general election:.  "Originally I didn't have an opponent.  I was running for November.  All I can do for this primary is ask people to take a look, ask them to investigation, ask them to spread the word about me.  Right now, the momentum in my campaign is incredible.  I'm getting endorsements.  I got Mahoning County and that was important . . . I truly have the desire to ensure public trust in the system."


O'Neill can dish it out, and he's wrongly described Rucker as nothing more than a 'judge in traffic court."  In Hamilton County, the Muny Court has countywide jurisdiction and while it does handle traffic tickets, it also handles misdemeanor crimes and civil cases up to $25,000.  The dockets are varied and frequently involve jury trials.  In a comment on Ohio Daily Blog earlier this month, O'Neill disparaged Rucker and said supporters should not delude themselves.  He said Rucker might not be electable in his own county:

"Sorry to rain on everybody's parade here, but last night was THE FIRST EVENT in the primary race since I was placed on the ballot. And the vote by the Trumbull County Democratic Party was 135 for O'Neill and 15 for Rucker. Let's look at some numbers here folks. Judge Rucker seems to be a very nice guy, and there is no question the Hamilton County Democratic Party arranged for him to be APPOINTED a Judge in traffic court. Since then the local party has seen to it that he has had no opponents, so his electability, even in Hamilton County, is very much in question. There is no question about qualifications. I have served a decade on the Court of Appeals, where I was elected and re-elected in a five county area, and I have sat on the Supreme Court of Ohio by assignment. I even have more judicial experience than the incumbent Justice Cupp! So let the race begin. But please, my friends, don't delude yourself. I am the favorite in this primary and I am going to win. Peace. Judge William Michael O'Neill"

Bill O'Neill's campaign website is available by clicking here.  And you can click here to check out Rucker for Justice.

Cincinnati's Banks Project Claims New Orleans Restaurant Chain Backed Out of Deal: Queen City's Riverfront Losing NOLA Flavor?

Cincy Loses Eatery Named After Gov. Huey P. Long

By James McNair

Special to the Bellwether

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- It didn’t take long for The Banks development, Cincinnati’s answer to Newport on the Levee across the Ohio River, to spill into the county courthouse. Just a few months after a group of three New Orleans-based dining and drinking establishments failed to open as scheduled, Banks landlord Riverbanks Renaissance Phase 1-A Owner LLC has filed suit to collect back rent and more than $200,000 in improvements.

 The suit, filed in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court by Earl Messer and Dominick Gerace of Taft Stettinius & Hollister, names as defendants TWL LCN TB Cincinnati LLC (the corporate name for The Wine Loft wine bar and La Crepe Nanou restaurant) and Huey’s TB Cincinnati LLC (better known as Huey’s 24/7 Diner). It also names their parent company, Doyle Restaurant Group, which guaranteed the lease. Doyle is based in New Orleans.

 The Banks announced exactly one year ago that The Wine Loft, La Crepe Nanou and Huey’s were coming. As agreed under the lease, Riverbanks paid $128,160 to TWL as a first installment toward its interior improvements. It paid $80,000 to Huey’s. For their part, TWL was supposed to start paying $17,644 a month in rent – Huey’s $11,110 per month – six months after they signed the lease. They were also supposed to submit their building plans and contribute toward The Banks’ operating and marketing funds. They were supposed to open by Oct. 7.

Riverbanks, which is based in Atlanta, says none of that happened. Now it wants a judge to order the return of its $208,160 in advances and the payment of all rent and payments owed under the lease. The defendants have yet to file a response.

 
The defendants' problems don't appear to be confined to Cincinnati. According to press accounts, a Wine Loft franchise in Pittsburgh's trendy SouthSide Works filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the federal bankruptcy law last October. One month later, a Wine Loft in the Gulch district in Nashville's west end closed after an 18-month run.

According to its Website, Doyle operates 18 Wine Lofts, one La Crepe Nanou and two Huey’s. Huey’s was named after the colorful former Louisiana governor Huey P. Long, the Kingfish.  Naturally, the restaurant serves Cajun food.  Taking over the Wine Loft and La Crepe Nanou spaces in The Banks is The Wine Guy Wine Shop & Bistro, which is already open in Rookwood in Norwood.

Deal Brewing To Count Provisional Ballots in 2010 Juvenile Court Election: Democrat Tracie Hunter Close To Claiming Disputed Judgeship

Quiet Talks To Settle Disputed Election?

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- At the moment, a mediation session in Hunter v. Hamilton County Board of Elections  is set for Friday with retired U.S. Magistrate Michael Merz of Dayton.  This is the first indication of any movement.  But the talks could be pushed back because of a death in the family of Hamilton County Republican Chairman Alex Triantafilou, who also heads the four-member board of elections.  The talks are aimed at bringing resolution to a disputed election that has been tied up over allegations of due process and equal protection violations.  Voters cast ballots almost 15 months ago, but no winner has ever been declared in the contest between Tracie Hunter and John Williams, the GOP candidate who was 23 votes ahead when counting stopped.

With those results in a Deep Freeze, Hunter and Williams have filed to run against each other again this year for another seat on the two-judge juvenile court.  This time, Williams has the judgeship.  An incumbent (Karla Grady) retired to create a vacancy.  Gov. John Kasich appointed Williams, who is trying to hold onto the judgeship by seeking election in November's general election.  So there is a rematch between Hunter and Williams even though their original contest has never been decided.  That  judgeship still sits open.

The Daily  Bellwether has heard from well-placed insiders that a settlement -- if one can be reached -- ending litigation over the 2010 election would have to be approved by U.S. District Judge Susan Dlott of Cincinnati.   Dlott has yet to rule on Hunter's request for a permanent injunction ordering the Board of Elections not to reject provisional ballots cast because of poll worker error.  Dlott would retain jurisdiction under the settlement.   Dlott is said to be urging the sides to try to work out their differences.  But there is nothing in the court filings showing that talks for a negotiated settlement are on the table.  And no one involved has gone on the record to openly discuss the mediation session.

Any possible settlement would likely put Hunter in office.  It is widely agreed that the uncounted provisional ballots would trend her way.  On Nov. 2, 2010, she was 2,800 votes behind in unofficial results.  After some provisional were opened and added to her tally, she cut Williams lead to 23 votes.  Then counting stopped with 849 provisional ballots left to go.  If Hunter wins, she would become the only Democrat on the Juvenile Court, and would be the presiding judge because of seniority.  She would have authority to administer the agency, long a GOP patronage bastion.  Right now, Williams is the presiding judge even though he is unelected and serves by appointment of the governor.  The Ohio Republican Party, which has intervened in the lawsuit, has dropped out of the case.  The Ohio Democratic Party remains active and is supporting Hunter's demand that the provisional ballots be counted.

Any settlement would probably have to include a handshake agreement between the Republicans and Democrats for Hunter to drop out of this year's rematch with Williams, giving him a free ride at the polls and allowing him to stay in office.  That would also have to include a provision that the Democrats not oppose Williams in 2014, when the term expires and he would have to seek reelection.  Here's an excerpt from Hunter's trial brief against the Hamilton County Board of Elections that summarizes the dispute:

"D. Provisional Voting in the Wrong Precinct
In the November 2, 2010 election there were 849 provisional voters whose ballots were
rejected by the Board because they were cast in the wrong precinct.  Of those 849 ballots, 286 provisional voters were in the correct polling location when they voted in the wrong precinct.These 286 voters voted in a multiple precinct polling location.  Some locations have multiple precincts voting in the same room.  The voter must find the right table within the location.  It is the duty of the poll worker to direct the voter to the correct precinct or table. (O.R.C. § 3505.181(C) (1); PX34, Secretary of State Directive 2010-74, p. 12; PX6, Hamilton County Board of Elections Poll Worker Comprehensive Manual, p. 7; PX7, Hamilton County Board of Elections Poll Worker Quick Guide, p. 2).  There is confusion in multiple precinct polling locations because voters do not know which is their correct precinct table."

Many of the legal filings in the U.S. District Court lawsuit are available by clicking here.

Hamilton County Appraises Lindner Home at $1.527 Million: Value of Billionaire's Estate Dips By $400,000 Since Bubble Popped

 Lindner's Home Hit by Housing Bubble

CINCINNATI (TDB)-- Hamilton County property appraisers have chopped 21% off the the value of Carl Lindner's estate in Indian Hill over the past 6 years.  Even mansions inhabited by billionaires in the stratosphere of the 1% aren't worth as much as before the housing bubble burst.  At the time of his death last October `17, Lindner was considered one of the world's richest people.  He was known for corporate raiding, Republican politics and recognizing a good deal when he saw one -- and also for philanthropy and giving away his money. In 2005, Hamilton County Auditor Dusty Rhodes' staff set peak value of Lindner's house and 7.25 acre estate at $1.925 million.  In the recently completed reappraisal of all property in the county, the value was was down  to $1.527 million.  The county property tax data record shows:

Downtown Cincinnati CPA Firm Targeted by McCluskey Chevrolet: GM Dealer Claims Accountants Didn't Uncover $6 Million Scam

GM Dealer Says CPAs Missed Hands in Cookie Jar

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- The latest chapter in the scandal unfolding over an alleged $6 million embezzlement scandal at the GM dealership is another lawsuit.  This one  accuses a respected accounting firm of professional malpractice for failing to spot hands in the cookie jar.  McCluskey Chevrolet Inc. lawyer David Eberley filed the suit last month.  Hamilton County Common Pleas Court records show  J.D. Cloud & Co. LLP has counsel retained to fight the auto dealer's case but has not yet filed a formal response disputing the charges.  The lawsuit is assigned to Judge Beth Myers, who has set a case management conference for March 2.  Boiled down, the dealership's lawsuit appears to center on whether the accountants  rode the audit trail hard enough earlier this decade.  On the other hand, there are contracts that did not guarantee illegal activity would be discovered.  The accounting contracts can be interpreted to say the CPA work did not come with an "absolute assurance" every issue would be detected.

Cincinnati's William Howard Taft is Back From the Dead: Campaign Website Promotes 2012 Presidential Campaign

The Fat Man Returns

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- He's back after 100 years and he wants to move into the White House again.  Or squeeze into the executive mansion.  After all, he was a man of enormous girth.  A campaign website has popped up promoting Cincinnati's William Howard Taft, a Republican who served a single term.  His enduring feat as president:  He was the first chief executive to throw out the opening pitch at a Major League Baseball game.  Taft's got a Facebook page, too.  It all seems tied into the silly season (or maybe somebody is promoting a new book).  Meanwhile, his rotundency has already fired a zinger about the current crop of GOP candidates:  "Newt Gingrich crusades to mkae the moon the 51st state!  I fear he fails to grasp the gravity of the issues here on Earth."


Taft says he's no longer a Republican, news which may sadden the hearts of Republicans everywhere.  They might hope he'd throw his weight around, thinking he's better than anyone in the GOP currently seeking the job.

City Prosecutors Prepping to Dismiss Hundreds of Cases vs. 'Occupy Cincinnati' Protestors: Dowtown Arrests Lacked Legal Authority?

Occupy Cincinnati Cases To Be Dropped

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- "Occupy and City have reached a verbal agreement.  Lawyers are contacting clients.  Next court date, cases will be dismissed if agreement is satisfactory."

That's the tip -- via e-mail -- which arrived just moments ago from a well-placed source who said City Hall and courthouse officials are getting the word today.  The Daily Bellwether has been able to confirm that more than 200 tickets for violating a 10 p.m. park closure rule will be dropped under the deal.  Also reportedly slated for dismissal are 23 tresspassing charges filed against the anti-Wall Street protestors who were arrested last October 21.  The arrests occurred when Cincinnati police raided the Occupy Cincinnati camp at Piatt Park and closed it down.  The camp had been in operation for about two weeks.  All the arrests were peaceful.