Accident Derails Career Of Ohio Bar Applicant

An applicant for admission to the Ohio Bar disclosed two alcohol-related incidents that had taken place in 2010.

One involved a reckless driving conviction that was pled down from driving under the influence; the other an open container of beer.

He was provisionally allowed to sit for the July 2013 exam.

But shortly before that event he was involved in another alcohol-related driving event in which he struck a parked car and left the scene. He had been drinking after a night of studying.

As a result, he was not allowed to sit for the 2013 exam.

The Ohio Supreme Court has now denied him permission to sit again.

The court noted concerns about his candor in connection with the pre-exam incident. His hearing testimony was inconsistent and an email to the Board of Commissioners on Character and Fitness had mischaracterized the circumstances.

The applicant was not found to have a chemical dependence and the bar’s program did not propose that he enter into treatment.

He may reapply to sit in July 2015. (Mike Frisch)