Still no trial date in sexual imposition case against Recorder Mike Doran

There is still no trial date set in the sexual imposition case against Lorain County Recorder Mike Doran after he made his second appearance in the case at Elyria Municipal Court on Monday, but a second pretrial hearing was set after a brief disagreement over a motion to suppress evidence. Doran was charged in July with misdemeanor sexual imposition in Municipal Court, and he pleaded not guilty to that charge on July 24 in a hearing before visiting Judge Patrick Carroll. On Monday, Doran went before Carroll again for a pretrial hearing, and Special Prosecutor John Reulbach requested that the judge schedule both a second hearing and a trial date. Defense attorney Justin Mackin requested only a second pretrial hearing be scheduled, and Reulbach did not fight the decision of Carroll to do just that. Mackin said that there was no plea deal proposed on Monday, but that he and Reulbach were still engaged in negotiations. Doran's second preliminary hearing is scheduled to occur in Elyria Municipal Judge Gary Bennett's court room on Oct. 16 at 1:30 p.m. Carroll also said that the no-contact order between Doran and the alleged victim would stay in place, and bond would again be continued. If found guilty, Doran could face up to 60 days in jail, a fine of up to $500 and he would be required to register as a tier one sex offender for 15 years. During the hearing on Monday, Mackin told Carroll that he planned to file a motion to suppress evidence, which requests certain evidence in the case to be thrown out if the defense can prove the evidence was collected in violation of the defendant's rights. Carroll said that the time limit to file a motion to suppress had already passed, as under Ohio law suppression must be submitted within 35 days of arraignment. Carroll said that Mackin was free to file a motion for leave, allowing him to file for suppression even though the time limit had elapsed, but the prosecution could oppose that motion. "So you can file the motion for leave and obviously the prosecutor can oppose it or not, depending on what it is," Carroll said. "But do you agree the time has expired?" "I don't want to admit that on record," Mackin said. "Well, it's a matter of math," Carroll responded. "It is 35 days from the initial appearance." Mackin said that although the arraignment was more than 35 days ago, he had not received discovery from the prosecution until more recently than that, and so he had not learned about the evidence which he was trying to suppress until that time. "I understand that gives rise to the suppression issue, but that doesn't address the rule," Carroll said. What specific evidence Mackin was seeking to suppress was not discussed in court on Monday. Carroll also initially expressed some concern that an additional pretrial hearing may push the trial date back excessively far. "If I may, your Honor, the conversation that the prosecutor and I were having, the negotiations included whether or not there's an offer, that really hasn't gotten much traction until today," Mackin said. "And then in response I talked about a motion to suppress in response to the answer. The prosecutor did not have any objection to that procedure between us." Mackin said he also needed more time to complete the process of reciprocal discovery, the process of sharing evidence with the prosecutor, adding that he could complete that process by Friday. Reulbach did not object to the scheduling of another pretrial hearing, and so the second hearing on Oct. 16 was scheduled. "Often the first pretrial is an opportunity for both parties to exchange their current position and communicate that position with the Judge," Mackin told The Chronicle. "This helps all parties be apprised of upcoming arguments and decisions. Special Prosecutor Reulbach and I were able to do that today and we are currently focused on future proceedings." The sexual imposition charge against Doran is based on a complaint which was made in mid-May to Elyria police. Detectives investigated the complaint and gave their findings to Reulbach, who was brought in as a special prosecutor by Elyria Law Director Amanda Deery. Reulbach found that a charge of misdemeanor sexual imposition, which can refer to any unwanted or coerced sexual contact, was warranted. The court then found probable cause to file the charge. Doran, a Republican, is currently serving his second term as Lorain County Recorder after winning reelection in November 2024. Contact Owen MacMillan at (440) 329-7123 or omacmillan@chroniclet.com.