05/17/02

Columbus

- The chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court is recommending that individuals and groups who donate money anonymously to political campaigns be required to report their contributions.

Chief Justice Thomas Moyer outlined his plan to reduce the impact of money on judicial campaigns in a speech yesterday to the Ohio State Bar Association.

Moyer's comments came nearly two years after business groups who never were identified raised $4 million in an unsuccessful attempt to oust Justice Alice Robie Resnick.

"The most important value of courts in a country that lives by the rule of law - trust and confidence - is being diminished by the raising and spending of money," Moyer said.

Moyer also recommended more frequent reporting of contributions to Supreme Court election campaigns and, eventually, full public funding of such races.

His proposal met with immediate criticism from the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, which led the fight against Resnick by creating Citizens for a Strong Ohio, a nonprofit educational organization that promoted "issue advocacy." Its focus on issues rather than a candidate freed the group from disclosure requirements.

The group's ads portrayed Resnick as a justice whose rulings were influenced by campaign donations from unions and lawyers. Resnick denied the accusations.

The chamber's ads apparently had little impact. Resnick defeated Republican challenger Terrence O'Donnell, a Cleveland appeals judge, by a margin of 57 percent to 43 percent.

The constitutionality of Moyer's proposal, if enacted, would be challenged quickly, said Chip McConville, the chamber's political director.

"There is the assertion out there that judicial campaigns are somehow different, but the way they rely right now on campaign fund-raising to do it, for all intents and purposes, there's very little difference between a legislative and judicial race," he said.

Issue-advocacy ads are exempt from disclosure because they are not permitted to use terms such as "vote for" or "vote against" a certain candidate.

In his speech, Moyer also said all judges should serve terms of eight years instead of six years.

Candidates for trial court judge also should have a minimum of 10 years of legal practice, and candidates for appeals court judge and Supreme Court justice should have more than 10 years' experience, Moyer said. Candidates now must have at least six years' experience.