Office: Conneaut Municipal Court
Age: 55
Residence: Conneaut, OH
Email: iarocciforjudge@gmail.com
Website: www.iarocci4judge.com
Occupation: Ashtabula County Prosecuting Attorney
Education: J.D. from The University of Toledo College of Law; B.S. in Accountancy from Miami University
Work Experience: Ashtabula County Prosecutor from December 2013 to Present and Assistant County Prosecutor in 1995 and 1996; Practicing Attorney in Conneaut, Ohio from January 1995 to December 2013; Practicing Attorney in Toledo, Ohio from 1989 to 1994.
Family: Married in Conneaut, Ohio to Lisa M. (Pataky) Iarocci for 31 years with two adult children Mari Ballas and Laina Iarocci.
Affiliations: Elected to the Conneaut Area City Schools Board of Education (Past President 3 years/9-year member); Past President, Past Vice President, and Member of The Conneaut Foundation Board of Trustees; Co-Founder and Co-Trustee of the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation, Inc.; President and Member of the Catholic Charities of Ashtabula County Board of Directors; Member of the LEADERship Ashtabula County Board of Directors and 17-year Day Chair of the LEADERship Ashtabula County Adult Program; Past President and Member of the Board of Trustees of the Ashtabula County Bar Association; Member of the Ashtabula County Port Authority Board of Directors; Member of the Conneaut Human Resources Center Board of Directors (12 ½ years); Member of the United Way of Ashtabula County Board of Directors; Member of the Conneaut Community Center Board of Directors; Member of the Conneaut Lions Club (Past President 2 years), Conneaut Moose Club, and Conneaut Elks Club; Member of the Community Counseling Center Board of Directors; Member, Lector and Eucharistic Minister at Corpus Christi Parish; Member of the St. Mary/St. Frances Cabrini Parish Finance Council; Conneaut Local Youth Organization Baseball and Softball Coach; 20-year Volunteer Sports Broadcaster for WWOW Radio and the Conneaut Telephone Company CableSuite 541 covering Conneaut High School sports; and Bible Study leader for high school students. In 2007, I was honored to receive the Conneaut Area Chamber of Commerce “President’s Award” (Chamber Champion), and in 2011, I was named the Conneaut Area Chamber of Commerce “Citizen of the Year.”
(1) List your judicial experience (courts and years):
I have not previously served as a judge.
(2) What about your non-judicial legal experience qualifies you to be a judge?
I have been a practicing attorney in Ohio for 30 years. As the elected County Prosecutor for the past 6 years, I have prosecuted and tried capital murder, murder, manslaughter, rape, burglary, robbery, felonious assault, drug trafficking, and domestic violence cases, to name a few. As County Prosecutor, I have represented all county elected officials and department heads, and all trustees, fiscal officers, and zoning officials in all 27 townships in our county. My administrative and management experience is significant as I manage both attorney and administrative staff in the Prosecutor’s office of approximately 30 employees with a total annual budget of approximately million. In private practice, I represented hundreds of clients in Conneaut and Ashtabula County involving various legal matters. My law office was located in downtown Conneaut for 19 years before I became County Prosecutor. I have substantial legal and management experience that has prepared me extremely well to serve my hometown of Conneaut as its next Conneaut Municipal Court Judge.
(3) Why are you running for this particular court seat?
My life-long commitment to Conneaut and legal and community service is unmatched in this race, and have prepared me very well to serve as Conneaut’s next judge. I hope to ensure that Conneaut Municipal Court joins the 21st century by having an on-line docket and presence readily available for public viewing and use (Note: since I announced my candidacy on March 15, 2019, Conneaut Municipal Court went on-line in a limited fashion two months later on May 17, 2019, over four years after the current judge took office). I also hope to substantially improve security at Conneaut Municipal Court as well as all of City Hall, and I will work closely and cooperatively with city officials in this regard. I plan to create a drug or treatment court in Conneaut Municipal Court, particularly in light of the opiate and drug epidemic that has plagued the community. I further intend to be a judge who works cooperatively with and is always available and accessible to police and other city officials. Maintaining the status quo at Conneaut Municipal Court is not acceptable. I intend to do more – much more – with the court that will significantly benefit the Conneaut residents and all those who work with the court.