An Ohio Supreme Court filing has prompted questions about the personal relationship between a judge and a contractor for whom she has approved funds for work he does in her courtroom.
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Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Sharon Kennedy temporarily removed Celebrezze on May 18 from a divorce case involving Strongsville businessman Jason Jardine, after Jardine’s attorney filed an affidavit of disqualification. The affidavit forbids Celebrezze from presiding over the case until Kennedy rules on the affidavit. Celebrezze, who did not respond to The Marshall Project - Cleveland’s request for comment after the affidavit was filed, has until June 8 to respond to the order.
Dottore’s company has collected nearly $450,000 in payments since 2017, with additional fees pending since invoices have not been submitted in some cases, Cuyahoga County court records show. Dottore charges between $100 and 400 per hour, depending on the task. Dottore said he has known Celebrezze since she was 7. Dottore was also appointed as a receiver on several cases where Celebrezze’s father, James Celebrezze, was the presiding judge.
“This comes down to perception,” Turcer said. “Most people don’t have the ability to suss out when something is wrong. That is why we need as much transparency as possible.” Celebrezze’s father originally appointed Dottore to that case and 10 others during the last six months of 2008, netting Dottore $340,000 in fees. Yet “the judge gave no work to any other receivers during the same period, records show, despite an Ohio Supreme Court rule that such appointments be rotated equitably,” the Plain Dealer reported.
Mike Lewis, of Lewis Investigations, said he followed Celebrezze on at least seven occasions to Dottore’s office, home, and to restaurants, according to the affidavit of disqualification. The judge and receiver met three to four times each week. On consecutive Fridays, March 24 and March 31, Celebrezze left her home and visited Dottore’s house in Lyndhurst. She parked her SUV in the driveway and entered through the large garage door, according to the affidavit of disqualification. She stayed nearly three hours on March 24 and an hour on March 31.
For this case, Dottore stated that he reviewed emails and business documents, held phone calls with lawyers and examined expenses from the couple’s businesses, among other things. “No, nor am I required to,” she said. “My long-standing professional and personal relationship with Mr. Dottore has no impact on the cases in front of me.”
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