J.D. Tomlinson has to drop private legal client he charged when prosecutor

Former elected Lorain County prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson and his law firm have had to drop a legal client after Prosecutor Tony Cillo noted that state law prohibited Tomlinson and Mishak Law from taking the case. The conflict is in state law, which says a former elected public official can't represent a client in matter in which they earlier participated for at least 12 months after leaving office. That means Tomlinson, who left office on Jan. 6, and Mishak Law had to end their representation of an Indiana man Tomlinson's office had indicted on felony drug crimes in 2022. Cillo, a Republican and former Tomlinson employee, defeated his former boss, a Democrat, in the 2024 election. Tomlinson joined Mishak Law earlier this year. Cillo asked Common Pleas Judge Christopher Rothgery on Monday to disqualify Tomlinson and Mishak Law in the case of Jonathan Doyle had asked Tomlinson and Mishak Law to represent him following his conviction on felony drug charges. The prohibition on representing Doyle applies to the whole law firm, not just Tomlinson. Doyle, 36, of Chesterton, Indiana, in February pleaded guilty to three counts of drug possession, including two felonies and one misdemeanor, and one count of attempted possession of drugs, a felony. Rothgery sentenced him in July to community control, with supervision to be transferred to his home state, according to court records. Following sentencing, Doyle hired Tomlinson to do post-conviction legal work for him. Informed that state law considers that a conflict — one that can be charged as a misdemeanor crime, Cillo wrote in his request to the court — attorney Matt Mishak and Tomlinson promptly took action to refund Doyle his money and withdraw as his attorneys. "This was a post-conviction matter. Attorney Tomlinson had no knowledge of the conflict at the time, and as soon as it came to light, he acted quickly and responsibly to protect the client," Mishak wrote Wednesday in a statement to The Chronicle-Telegram. "Prosecutor Cillo and I spoke directly, and after I agreed with his analysis, we arranged for a smooth withdrawal without objection," Mishak wrote. "Prosecutor Cillo indicated he was satisfied with that resolution. The client was well taken care of throughout the process and expressed satisfaction, just as J.D.'s clients consistently do." Mishak added that the client understood, and that he has "adjusted internal protocols for better screening" of clients so this doesn't happen again. Cillo confirmed Mishak's account of what happened. Cillo said Wednesday the matter turned out to be "much ado about nothing, but I gotta follow the law." Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.