Office: Lucas County – Lucas County Common Pleas Court, General
Trial Division
Age: 53
Residence: Maumee, OH
Email: judgestacycook@gmail.com
Website: N/A
Occupation: Judge, Lucas County Common Pleas Court, General Trial
Division
Education: BS Eastern Michigan University, JD University of Toledo
College of Law
Work Experience: Working since 12 yrs old. Professional Experience
12 years as an Attorney General Practice Civil and Criminal cases, 4 yrs
as Acting Judge Maumee Municipal Court while still practicing, 11+
years on Lucas County Common Pleas Court Bench.
Family: Married, 3 children
Affiliations: TARTA Board; AWAKE Board; Member Opioid Coalition;
Member Toledo Bar Association; Member Toledo Women’s Bar
Association
Endorsements: Democratic Party
Bar Association Ratings: No current ratings out as of the time of
completion of this document. I believe it would be unfair to use prior
ratings, as my opponent would not have had an opportunity to have
been considered.
(1) List your judicial experience (courts and years):
I am in my 12th year as a Judge of the Lucas County Common Pleas
Court. Prior to taking this seat I served for 4 years as an Acting Judge at
Maumee Municipal Court while still maintaining my practice. I have
tried cases as a practicing attorney in both jurisdictions as well as
having presided over dozens of trials and hearings throughout the
years at both the Municipal and Common Pleas Level. While serving on
the bench I have brought a drug court like model to the courtroom for
the last 11 years and it served as the basic model of the current
individual drug court that is now running as a specialized docket. I
continue to monitor the High Risk Recidivism population on my current
caseload in the same manner working with treatment providers and
probation officers as well as outside resources to fashion a useful
productive sentence that benefits the community in the long run. This
type of supervision is used on the the population that was not
sentenced to prison.
Over the course of the last 11 years, I have increased the Judicial
supervision of the cases with a much more proactive approach. Certain
portions of the sentence are designed to help reduce the defendant’s
return to criminal behavior. After any portion of the local in custody
punishment sanction or in patient treatment sanction of the sentence is
completed, a greater focus is placed on looking at the individual needs
the person may have that would allow for a more productive law
abiding life. Attention is placed on, making mental health treatment a
foundation if needed, linking the person to outside treatment providers
that have case management services. As well as, additional emphasis is
placed on educational needs and re engagement in learning either
through the school system if eligible or through the GED program. The
High Risk population remain in a Review status with the court seeing
them monthly or sooner should behavior or relapse warrant. The part
of the population with significant mental health issues that fall below
hospitalization qualifications are often seen weekly by the court until
they have established their contacts with their outside treatment
providers and have been stabilized on mental health medications if
necessary. The patterns and routines they establish with the court early
on help them to remember their dates and schedules in smaller
increments until patterns have been established.
Taking a more proactive approach has allowed me to react quickly in
the event a relapse is beginning or a person is destabilizing in their
mental health or new criminal behavior has occurred. Civil cases
receive equal personal attention with the court being available for
attorneys to address any discovery issues that are pending giving them
quick access to the court allows for unnecessary delays to be avoided.
This quick access to the court is beneficial to the parties and the
attorneys.
(2) What about your non-judicial legal experience qualifies you to be a
judge?
I come to the bench with one of the most well rounded practice
experiences of any Judge to take the local bench. Prior to completing
law school I worked in a law ×rm research and writing legal briefs and
documents. I subsequently clerked for a Judge at Toledo Municipal
Court. I was the Supervising Law Clerk for the court for several years
overseeing the scheduling and training of the Law Clerks. I became well
versed in the inner workings of the court and the corresponding
departments. Immediately, out of Law School, I opened my own
practice and began serving clientele on both Civil and Criminal matters.
I had significant practice experience representing people in each court
in Lucas County’s jurisdiction and outlying Counties throughout Ohio. I
was asked by several Judges while in practice to work on difficult cases
that they felt needed greater attention.
Prior to taking the bench, I worked with a young runaway juvenile client
where we engaged Federal authorities to assist in successfully taking
down a multi-state Human Trafficking Organization. Throughout my
practice I worked with a diverse clientele, and became well educated in
the needs of the mentally ill, the intellectually deficient and the
addicted population. I learned of resources that were available in the
community and was able to direct my clients to proper resources to
help stabilize their individual needs. These are tools and a skill set that I
use daily as a Judge when issuing a community control sentence. I
managed a civil caseload in my own practice. I trained in Mediation
skills prior to taking the bench and I use this skill on a daily basis
working with the Civil case load in settlement conferences.
Additionally, and less legal training connected, I stay connected to the
community at all levels. I routinely speak in schools, to children of all
ages. I speak to them with the hopes of preventing them from having
contacts with the court. I try to stay abreast of the the new trends and
drugs and issues our young people face. I work with many of the local
treatment providers to learn what best will assist in the successful
management of the people so that we don’t waste resources. Lastly, I
speak at engagements to empower young women, and co-ed classes to
be the best versions of themselves whenever I have the opportunity.
(3) Why are you running for this particular court seat?
I am running to continue to do the work I do for our community daily.
The courtroom is run in an open and courteous manner to the public
and practicing attorneys. I have worked hard to streamline systems
both in the courtroom and other departments in order to seek the best
use of more accurate information. I continue to learn in this job daily, I
doubt there will ever be a day to say I know everything. I take this
challenge of learning something new daily with excitement. I will
continue to bring high energy and interest to this job.
Over the course of the last 11 years, I have asked this question often
when perplexed with a policy or procedure “why do we do it this way?”
and in the beginning the answer was “because this is how we have
always done it”. Over the course of the years many of the policy and
procedures have been changed. Change, is often met with resistance,
but when the work can be looked at and the outcomes are better,
change isn’t always bad. I am working with a personal courtroom staff
that gives this community a high level of work. They are courteous and
energetic TEAM players, that are fully engaged in our mission. I believe
the work we are putting in is directly benefiting our community as a
whole. Working beside them in a TEAM environment has made the
courtroom fully functioning and extremely efficient. My hope is that
the community will see fit to allow me to continue my work. Thank you
for the opportunity to provide this information. Should anyone in the
community have questions or concerns, the office can be reached at
419-213-4567 or 4566.