Stinebaugh
WAPAKONETA — Jury selection in the trial of Wapakoneta mayor Tom Stinebaugh was a painstakingly slow and untypically private process on Monday.
Finding 12 jurors (and two alternates) who personally knew neither the two-term mayor nor any of the several witnesses summoned to testify during the trial did not come quickly nor easily. Courtrooms at both ends of the second floor of the Auglaize County courthouse were packed with potential jurors starting at 9 a.m. Monday. On the north end, in the common pleas court, some jurors were taken behind closed doors individually — due to the sensitive nature of the queries — for questioning by Judge Patricia Cosgrove as well as prosecutors and defense attorneys.
The common pleas courtroom was closed to spectators, except the potential jurors, throughout the process by order of the judge. The jury selection process, known as voir dire, is typically carried out in a public setting.
At the south end of the second floor, more potential jurors waited their turn until they were dismissed around noon, but the selection process continued in the main courtroom until late in the afternoon. By 3:30 p.m. a jury was seated.
Testimony in Stinebaugh’s trial will begin in earnest on Tuesday following opening statements scheduled for 9 a.m.
The mayor was indicted in August of 2021 on nine felony and eight misdemeanor counts related to his alleged theft in office of materials and services and various conflicts of interest as a public servant.
Stinebaugh, a lifelong Wapakoneta resident who was elected mayor of Wapakoneta in November 2015 and re-elected in 2019, pleaded not guilty to one count of theft in office, a third-degree felony; eight counts of having an unlawful interest in a public contract, fourth-degree felonies; and eight counts of conflict of interest, first-degree misdemeanors.
Six of the counts, three felony charges of having an unlawful interest in a public contract and three misdemeanor charges of conflict of interest were dismissed on Monday prior to the start of jury selection through a stipulation between attorneys.
The indictments in general allege that Stinebaugh entered into illegal contracts with family members and a business partner. He’s also accused of having the City of Wapakoneta pay for a sewer line to a property that his private company was developing. That incident allegedly occurred between 2016 and 2019.
The case is being heard by Judge Patricia Cosgrove, a retired Summit County Common Pleas Court jurist appointed by the Ohio Supreme Court to preside over the trial.
Prosecuting the case is Assistant Ohio Attorney General Micah Ault.
Following his indictment Stinebaugh, 63, was temporarily suspended from performing his duties as mayor on Aug. 30, 2021, by a panel of three retired judges appointed by Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor. The panel determined that Stinebaugh is legally responsible for the administration of the City of Wapakoneta and that the charges against him are directly related to his duties as mayor.
