State v. Towns, 2022 Ohio 3632

Steven Towns, Williams County sheriff, was charged under R.C. 102.03(B) for posting confidential information on the sheriff’s office website; the charge is a first-degree misdemeanor.
Towns moved to dismiss, arguing R.C. 102.06 makes the Ohio Ethics Commission the exclusive or mandatory reviewer of ethics complaints before criminal prosecution.
The trial court denied the motion; a jury convicted Towns and the court imposed a fine and community-control sanctions.
The Sixth District Court of Appeals affirmed, holding R.C. 102.06 provides a procedure for ethics review but is not exclusive or a prerequisite to criminal prosecution.
The Ohio Supreme Court accepted review limited to whether a prosecuting authority may bring an R.C. Chapter 102 criminal charge absent prior Ethics Commission review.
The Court held R.C. 102.06 does not bar independent criminal prosecution by an appropriate prosecuting authority; the Ethics Commission’s process is optional and not a jurisdictional gateway to prosecution.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether a criminal prosecution under R.C. 102.03(B) may proceed without prior review or findings by the Ohio Ethics Commission under R.C. 102.06	State: Prosecutor may independently charge and prosecute alleged ethics violations without prior Ethics Commission action	Towns: R.C. 102.06 is a special statutory process that must precede prosecution; Ethics Commission review/referral is a prerequisite	The Court held prosecutors may bring charges independently; R.C. 102.06 does not make Ethics Commission findings a prerequisite or exclusive avenue for criminal prosecution

State v. Taylor, 171 N.E.3d 290 (Ohio 2020) (questions of law reviewed de novo)
State v. Buckeye Elec. Co., 466 N.E.2d 894 (Ohio 1984) (court declines to imply administrative prerequisite to prosecution absent statutory language)
State v. Tipka, 466 N.E.2d 898 (Ohio 1984) (similar rule against implying prerequisite to prosecution)