The special prosecutor in the investigation of Athens County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Ward's possible violation of election law said yesterday he is waiting to be contacted by the special judge before starting work on the case.
Steve Knowling, a prosecuting attorney for Holmes County, said he needs confirmation from Tuscarawas County retired judge Roger Lile, the special judge in the case, that all the necessary paper work has been filed.
I haven't seen any kind of file on this
Knowling said. I'm waiting to be contacted by Judge Lile.
Knowling's investigation stems from evidence that one of Ward's campaign officials illegally modified five campaign checks.
Rebecca Holley, a secretary of Ward's campaign treasurer Mark Snider, allegedly admitted to Ward that she modified the checks. In a written statement Ward read at the April 13 Athens County Board of Elections meeting, Ward said Holley acknowledged modifying five checks signed by Ward and his wife because the couple was not authorized to sign checks. Only Snider was authorized to sign campaign checks.
Both Snider and Ward denied having any knowledge of Holley's actions.
Lile said he would contact the Athens County Court of Common Pleas today to confirm all the necessary paperwork had been filed before contacting Knowling.
Some additional controversy was sparked in the case when The Athens News and The Athens Messenger reported lawyer Robert Shostak, Ward's opponent in the November election, also was in violation of the law for signing campaign checks.
However, state officials determined that Shostak was authorized to sign the checks.
My concern was the newspapers had reported that there were problems with judicial candidates signing checks Shostak said. I looked it up and found no prohibition on me signing checks.
Shostak said he could sue the newspapers that incorrectly reported the information, but such an action was unlikely.
The confusion emerged after Athens County Board of Election officials told reporters that judges could not sign campaign checks.
Susan Gwinn, chair of the Athens County Board of Elections, said she called the Ohio Supreme Court's Board of Commissioners to confirm that a judicial candidate signing campaign checks was a violation of election law, and the Board's secretary told her it was.
When I called (the Ohio Supreme Court's Board of Commissioners' secretary) I asked him
'Is it a violation to sign checks
' and he said
'Yes
' Gwinn said.
The Board of Commissioner's secretary, Jonathan Marshall, said he never told Gwinn signing checks was forbidden, but did tell her the board did not recommend judicial candidates sign campaign checks because election law prohibits judicial candidates from soliciting or receiving campaign money.
Our advice to judicial candidates is don't sign checks because you're likely to be involved in soliciting or receiving campaign monies
Marshall said. I certainly had a conversation with her and I told her essentially (that).
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