Ohio Chief Justice urges local courts to put evictions on hold

ELYRIA — The Ohio Supreme Court is urging municipal courts to limit eviction proceedings when possible. Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor is asking local courts to process only emergency and time-sensitive issues, and temporarily stay most evictions and foreclosure proceedings. She said there must be flexibility in the process. "Most people think that evictions are just for mere nonpayment of your rent or whatever the situation, but there are certain types of evictions that may be, for example, domestic violence, and trying to get someone evicted from the home because they present a danger to the other members living in that home," O'Connor said during a news conference Thursday. "So it's up to the courts to deal with that." Many local courts have begun limiting their proceedings and interactions with the public. Lorain Municipal Court closed last week, though it is still holding criminal hearings including bond and arraignments over video. In a news release announcing its closure, it also continued eviction and foreclosure proceedings. Elyria Municipal Court is still open, but it also is working to limit the number of people coming in and out of its building. Judge Gary Bennett said the court's plan for eviction filings is still in the works, but suspects they may stop taking new filings and continue current cases unless there is an emergency situation. "I don't want to speak for the entire court because we haven't come to a consensus yet, but we're leaning toward where people are not going to be put out at the current time," he said. Bennett noted individual courts will have to decide how to handle evictions, as the Ohio Supreme Court cannot order a moratorium on the proceeding. On March 16, just hours before the primary election, Ohio Health Director Dr. Amy Acton issued an order closing polls, citing an imminent threat of widespread exposure to COVID-19. Bennet said, in his opinion, Acton could not issue any such order for the courts on evictions. "This is basic civics, three branches of government. She's part of the executive branch — the legislative branch and the judicial branch, we're all independent branches. In my opinion, the executive branch has no right to tell the judicial branch how to do its job. The Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio issued a statement, calling for $50 billion in emergency rental assistance to prevent evictions, and an additional $10 billion to relieve pressure on the homeless system. "Evictions put vulnerable people at even higher risk of exposure to the coronavirus as they double-up with other families or go to homeless shelters, which are already dangerously overburdened," COOHIO executive director Bill Faith said in the news release. "We support a pause in legal eviction proceedings, but it won't let people off the hook for paying the rent. And it won't stop evictions that take place outside the court process, and it won't prevent a flood of evictions once the eviction pause ends." He noted the state's goal should be to help Ohioans remain financially stable during and after the outbreak. Contact Carissa Woytach at 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.