Tiffin City Council ousts Repp, declares municipal court judgeship vacant

Tiffin, Ohio — Tiffin City Council on Monday unanimously passed an ordinance to declare a vacancy for the position of Tiffin-Fostoria Municipal Court judge, officially ousting Mark Repp from the judgeship after he was suspended by the Ohio Supreme Court last year.

The ordinance was proposed earlier this month after former Judge Mark Repp was suspended from the practice of law and his judicial office for one year without pay by the Ohio Supreme Court on Nov. 9, 2021.

Repp’s suspension was the result of a certified complaint filed against him, which stated that Repp abused his contempt power and engaged in “impatient, undignified, and discourteous conduct” during a court hearing in March 2020.

The Ohio Revised Code states that a vacancy in the office of judge exists when a judge is absent from their duties for a period of six consecutive months. Repp has been suspended and absent from the bench for over six months, which made it the responsibility of Tiffin City Council to officially declare a vacancy.

In addition to declaring a vacancy, the ordinance includes a notification to the Seneca County Board of Elections so that the process for an election to fill the vacant seat can be initiated.