On Wednesday, December 3, 2025, News5 Cleveland reported that Geauga County Juvenile and Probate Judge Timothy Grendell requested the Ohio Supreme Court to reconsider its recent decision to suspend him. Grendell filed a motion on Monday, seeking a review of the court’s ruling issued on November 21, which suspended him for at least six months.

The Supreme Court’s suspension followed a report by News 5 Investigator Sarah Buduson, which highlighted that Grendell’s case was the oldest judicial professional misconduct case pending before the court. Buduson’s report came five years after her initial investigation into the judge’s conduct.

The justices determined that Grendell had violated judicial conduct rules, demonstrating a “conscious disregard for the law” in a 2020 case. This case involved the detention of two teenage brothers, Conner and Carson Glasier, due to a custody dispute.

In his motion for reconsideration, Grendell specifically challenged the court’s finding that he violated the state’s code of judicial conduct by sending the Glasier brothers to the Portage-Geauga County Juvenile Detention Center for three nights after they refused to visit their estranged father. He argued that precedent in Ohio’s Eleventh District Court of Appeals permitted him to detain the brothers under those circumstances.

Grendell also contested the length of his suspension, which was set at 18 months with 12 months stayed. He argued that the court should reconsider this decision, given that he prevailed on three of the four counts against him.

Furthermore, Grendell requested the court to review its order requiring him to pay 100% of the costs associated with the Board of Professional Conduct’s proceedings, totaling $23,178.75. He based this request on the fact that he won three of the four counts initially brought against him. The court had dismissed two other charges against Grendell, and another charge was dropped before the court’s review.

Additionally, Grendell sought clarification or vacatur of the court’s order to reimburse any amounts awarded to the Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection. He argued that the order was “inapplicable” to his situation, as it typically pertains to attorneys notifying clients and opposing counsel about their suspension.

The disciplinary case against Grendell centered on his decision to place the Glasier brothers in solitary confinement during the pandemic. The court found that the unruly charges against the brothers were unwarranted and that there was no legal basis for their detention. The court also determined that Grendell violated a juvenile court rule by prohibiting the brothers from contacting their mother, Stacy Hartman, while they were in detention.

Hartman expressed her disappointment with the court’s ruling, stating that Grendell should have received a harsher punishment. She also voiced her frustration with the length of time it took the court to issue its ruling.

Geauga County Auditor Chuck Walder also expressed his disappointment with the court’s ruling. He noted that judges are generally held to a higher standard.

The court dismissed a charge related to Walder’s ongoing dispute with Grendell over billing and oversight, as well as a charge related to Grendell’s testimony in support of legislation about COVID-19 statistics, which was sponsored by his wife, former Ohio lawmaker Diane Grendell.

The court concluded that punishing Grendell for his speech at a Geauga County Tea Party meeting and his legislative testimony would violate his First Amendment rights, but cautioned judges to “tread with caution” when providing legislative testimony.

 

 

Source: News5 Cleveland