Three move on in bid for judge nomination in Clark County

Five applicants initially applied for the open seat that became available when Clark County Municipal Court Judge Eugene S. Nevius recently resigned after serving the area since 1981. The three candidates who will move forward for a possible nomination to fill the vacancy include:

• Stephen Schumaker, deputy attorney general for law enforcement for Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. He is a 34-year veteran of the Clark County Prosecutor’s Office and served as prosecuting attorney for 26 of those years. Schumaker is a graduate of Wittenberg University and earned his law degree from The Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law, according to information from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.

• Brian Driscoll, who has served as an assistant Clark County prosecutor since 2005. Driscoll was admitted to practice in 2001 after earning a degree from the Thomas M. Cooley School of Law.

• Daniel Carey, who received his law degree from Ohio Northern University and has been licensed to practice since 1991. Carey is also a chief prosecutor for the city of Bellefontaine and also works for Thompson, Dunlap and Heydinger, Ltd., a firm headquartered in Bellefontaine. Carey previously served as an assistant Clark County prosecutor, and narrowly lost an election for the seat against Nevius in 2015.

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The Clark County Republican Party organized a screening committee to gather applications for the position and make recommendations.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich is expected to nominate a replacement before the end of this year, said Dan Harkins, chairman of the Clark County Executive Committee.

Harkins told the News-Sun the Republican Central Committee is scheduled to meet Thursday to make a final decision, and a recommendation will be forwarded to Kasich’s office by the end of this week.

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There will be a special election next year to determine who will fill the seat for the remainder of this term. Voters elect municipal court judges in odd-numbered years.