O’Neill: Justices took donations from party in case before high court
The complaint about Justices Robert Cupp, left, and Terrence O’Donnell is linked to FirstEnergy Corp. State Supreme Court candidate William M. O’Neill.
COLUMBUS – “O’Neill said that Cupp and O’Donnell heard oral arguments on Jan. 17 in a case in which an attorney for Ohio Edison participated. Ohio Edison is owned by FirstEnergy Corp., which O’Neill said was “the real party of interest in the case.”
Two weeks after the oral arguments, O’Neill said, FirstEnergy, through its political-action committee, contributed $6,300 to each of the re-election campaigns of Cupp and O’Donnell. About four weeks later, on Feb. 29, Cupp and O’Donnell joined a majority opinion favoring Ohio Edison in the case, according to O’Neill.
‘At a minimum, these two justices should have either refused to accept any contributions from a party to a matter currently on their docket or recused themselves’ from the case, O’Neill said.
He told The Dispatch last night that he has asked Coughlan’s office for a full investigation, adding, ‘I dare them to say there’s no problem with taking a $6,300 contribution two weeks after hearing the case.’”
— Joe Hallett, Columbus Dispatch
