Meluch Named to Public Defender Commission
By Joshua Keeran | The Delaware Gazette
The judges of the Court of Common Pleas of Delaware County have appointed Maribeth Meluch, of Delaware County, to a four-year term on the county’s Public Defender Commission.
Meluch is a partner at the law firm of Kohrman Jackson & Krantz. She is a former magistrate, who has familiarity with the court system and the role of public defenders. Meluch has previously served on the commission during the era preceding a full-time public defender.
Meluch is a Delaware County resident and a member of the Delaware County Bar Association. She is also active in the Big Walnut/Galena Rotary Club. Meluch is a member of the Delaware Area Chamber of Commerce and Sunbury/Big Walnut Chamber of Commerce.
Presiding Judge Randall D. Fuller said, “Attorney Meluch will make an excellent addition to the Public Defender Commission, and I know she is looking forward to beginning her new duties in October.”
The Public Defender Commission appoints the county public defender and determines the qualifications and size of the supporting staff and facilities and other requirements needed to maintain and operate the office. Among other duties, the commission recommends an annual operating budget to the county commissioners. The public defender represents adults and juveniles who are indigent and charged with an offense which risks potential loss of liberty.
Ohio law provides that two of the five members of the county’s Public Defender Commission are appointed by the judges of the Court of Common Pleas with the balance appointed by the county commissioners.
Read the original article, as published by The Delaware Gazette, here.