FRANKLIN COUNTY ENDORSED DEMOCRATS FOR 2023
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FRANKLIN COUNTY MUNICIPAL COURT
ANDREA PEEPLES
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Judge Peeples received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Miami University and her Juris Doctorate from The Ohio State University. Before being elected, she served as legal counsel in the Franklin County Public Defender's Office, the Columbus City Attorney's Office, the Franklin County Prosecutor's Office, and finally in the Columbus City Attorney's Civil Division. She has trial experience in municipal, common pleas, juvenile, and federal court.
Judge Peeples was elected as a Franklin County Municipal Court Judge in 2005 and re-elected in 2011 and 2017. She has been appointed to the Advisory Committee on Interpreters Services for three terms by the Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court and served as a Delegate to the National Center for State Courts on the issues of Language Access in the Courts. Judge Peeples has also served two terms on the Supreme Court Advisory Committee for Domestic Violence. The Judge is also a member of the Firearms Technical Assistance Project and The Franklin County Blueprint for Safety; the task force using a Departmental of Justice grant to improve justice responses to Domestic Violence. Judge Peeples has served extensively as faculty or presenter, including the following: Technology in the Courts; Evidence Collection in Domestic Violence Cases; Law Enforcement Officers as Drug Recognition Experts; Advanced Standardized Field Sobriety Test – OVI; and Practical Court Applications in Interpreter Services. Judge Peeples presented; Opiate Summit; New Interpreters Court Procedure - Roles and the Record for the Ohio Supreme Court; and as a facilitator for the Ohio Association of Court Administrators, she presented; Taking a Look at Sovereign Citizens; and Know Your Rights and Immigration Updates. Judge Peeples was also a guest lecturer twice for the Moritz American Law and Language Summer Program and was on the Judicial Panel for Legal Aid New Lawyer Training. |
ZACH GWIN
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Throughout his career, Zach has shown his dedication to public service. Zach has both a passion for, and a record of, advocating for our underserved communities in both his work and personal life. From Victim Witness Advocate, to defense attorney, to Assistant City Attorney, Zach has the diversity of experience and connections to the community needed in our Court.
Zach serves as an Assistant City Attorney in the Columbus City Attorney’s Office within the Zone Initiative. There Zach is responsible for handling public nuisance litigation in the Franklin County Environmental Court. In this role, Zach is tasked with handling quality of life issues on the west side of the City where he lives with his family. Zach has received numerous credits in local news for his work to close down locations of serious violence and chronic criminal activity. In his current role, Zach has secured temporary restraining orders and injunctions to close dozens of drug houses and multiple, dangerous after- hours bars. Zach has fought for lead paint remediation, reducing vacant properties, and improving housing conditions for residents. Zach began his legal career as a victim witness advocate and was later hired by then Columbus City Attorney Richard C. Pfeiffer as an Assistant Prosecutor. As an Assistant Prosecutor, Zach handled thousands of cases and litigated dozens of cases to verdict before judges and juries in Franklin County Municipal Court. After a number of years as an Assistant Prosecutor, Zach joined the law firm of Farlow & Associates where his practice primarily focused on criminal defense. Shortly after, Zach returned to the Columbus City Attorney’s Office under City Attorney Zach Klein. Zach has argued before the 10th District Court of Appeals on multiple occasions and also has experience in medical malpractice, personal injury, consumer protection, and education law. |
JARROD B. SKINNER
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Judge Jarrod B. Skinner was elected to Franklin County Municipal Court in November 2017 after having served the previous 12 years as a Prosecutor for the City of Columbus. He presides over both a standard criminal/civil docket in addition to the Military and Veterans Services (MAVS) docket.
He serves as Chair of the Technology and as Co-Chair of the Personnel Committee at the Franklin County Municipal Court. Judge Skinner also serves as a member of the Finance and Budget Committee, Specialized Docket Committee and the Probation and Pre-trial Services Committee. Outside of Franklin County, Judge Skinner serves on the Supreme Court of Ohio Advisory Committee on Domestic Violence and is a board member of the Franklin County Law Library. Additionally, Judge Skinner currently serves on the Capital University Law School Alumni Association Board. He has previously served on the Columbus Bar Association Board of Governors and the African American Law Alumni Board at Capital University Law School. Judge Skinner moved from The Bronx, New York to Bedford, Ohio in 1996. The first in his family to go to college, Jarrod earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from The Ohio State University, where he developed an interest in becoming an attorney. After working two jobs and attending law school at night, Judge Skinner graduated from Capital University Law School in 2005 and shortly thereafter began his legal career, dedicating his life to fighting for equal opportunities for all citizens, no matter their background. In the Columbus Bar Association's Judicial Performance Poll, Judge Skinner consistently ranks among the top-tier in every measured category. Judge Skinner has received countless awards and accolades since first being elected in 2017. Judge Jarrod B. Skinner is a member of Faith Ministries Church and lives with his wife and children in Columbus. |
