Scioto County Judge Howard H. Harcha III will serve as president of the Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association for 2013 after his election Thursday during the annual winter conference.

Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor administered the oath of office to Judge Harcha and the other judges elected to leadership positions. She also spoke briefly and assisted in handing out 13 Golden Gavel awards to retiring judges with at least 10 years of service on the bench.

Nearing the completion of his 22nd year on the bench in Portsmouth, Judge Harcha served one six-year term in Portsmouth Municipal Court. Currently serving his third term on the common pleas bench, he was elected in 1996 and has been re-elected twice.

“I consider it an honor to serve the association, and I appreciate the trust my fellow judges have placed in me to serve as their president,” Judge Harcha said.
Additional association officers include:

• Darke County Judge Jonathan P. Hein, president-elect
• Franklin County Judge Guy L. Reece II, first vice president
• Licking County Judge Thomas M. Marcelain, second vice president
• Cuyahoga County Judge David T. Matia, third vice president
• Lucas County Judge Linda J. Jennings, fourth vice president
• Montgomery County Judge Barbara P. Gorman, secretary
• Wayne County Judge Mark K. Wiest, treasurer
• Trumbull County Judge Peter J. Kontos, past president

The Golden Gavel honorees include:

• Franklin County Judge John F. Bender
• Franklin County Judge John P. Bessey
• Washington County Judge Susan E. Boyer
• Warren County Judge Neal B. Bronson
• Stark County Judge Charles E. Brown Jr.
• Hamilton County Judge Dennis S. Helmick
• Lucas County Judge James D. Jensen
• Stark County Judge Lee Sinclair
• Trumbull County Judge John M. Stuard
• Cuyahoga County Judge Ronald Suster
• Allen County Judge Richard K. Warren
• Champaign County Judge Roger B. Wilson
• Lorain County Judge Edward M. Zaleski

The common pleas judges association’s membership includes all general division judges of the state’s common pleas courts, and its mission is “to improve the law, the legal system and the effective administration of justice.”