An Ohio State Bar Association forum on the importance of the Ohio Constitution focused on the critical role that state constitutions play in our democracy and home rule.

Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor provided the welcoming remarks and revealed some troubling statistics. She pointed to a recent Marquette University Law School poll that shows 57 percent of Americans haven't read the Constitution of the United States.

“What do you think the numbers would be for folks reading the Ohio Constitution?” she asked. “I couldn't find that statistic, but I'd bet the ranch that it's a lot less.”

“It's not enough to be able to name the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. It's imperative to know what these words mean. Clearly, there is a disconnect and a deficit demonstrated time and time again.”

In addition to Chief Justice O’Connor, Justices Pat DeWine, Pat Fischer, Michael Donnelly, and Melody Stewart engaged on the topic during the panel held via Zoom.

The forum also was addressed by United States Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton, who sits on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He is the author of “51 Imperfect Solutions: 51 Imperfect Solutions: States and the Making of American Constitutional Law,”

“I’m interested in hearing cases where the issue involves protections under both the U.S. Constitution and the Ohio Constitution, but where the Ohio Constitution offers greater or broader protections,” Justice Stewart said.

Justice Fischer researches other states’ constitutional rulings.

“There are states that have passed similar, almost verbatim, parts, and I will look to those to see how they've interpreted them,” Justice Fischer explained. “But I'm not bound by those in any way, shape or form because the history of Ohio is different than those other states.”

Justice Donnelly pointed to one case heard by the Ohio Supreme Court, Youngstown City School District Board of Education v. State, that involved whether the legislature had violated the state constitution.

“There were busloads of individuals from the Youngstown area that came to watch those arguments because they believed this was an issue that directly affects how our democracy functions and our legislature functions,” Justice Donnelly said. “What are the checks and balances that exist in the Ohio constitution?”

Justice DeWine wants to see the state constitution put to greater use.

“What I'm looking for when it comes to the Ohio Constitution is some independent analysis,” Justice DeWine said. “I think that litigants have done a good job in recent years of referencing the Ohio Constitution. But what I would suggest is to go beyond simply mentioning a provision of the Ohio Constitution. It’s not always easy. It’s not like the federal constitution, where there’s a lot of law review articles and historical analysis.

“But if litigants want us to treat a provision of the Ohio Constitution differently than its federal counterpart, they should make arguments based on the unique text, tradition, and history of the constitutional provision at issue,” Justice DeWine said.