The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Former Lake Catholic principal named grand jury foreman
Lake County Common Pleas Judge John P. O’Donnell has appointed Mentor resident Richard M. Koenig as grand jury foreman for a three-month term commencing in July.
Koenig is retired and has had an extensive career in education in both the public and Catholic school systems. He started his career as a teacher at St. Joseph High School for one year in 1972, taught for six years at Lake Catholic High School and ended his teaching career in 2007 at Notre Dame College as a student teaching supervisor.
He served as a school counselor from 1979 to 1982 at Wickliffe High School and in 1984 to 1986 at Willoughby Middle School.
In addition to his teaching experience, Koenig has been an assistant principal and a principal for Euclid City Schools; a middle school principal and high school principal for Cuyahoga Heights Schools; elementary school principal for Mentor Schools; interim principal for South EuclidLyndhurst Schools; principal at Lake Catholic High School, and an interim dean of students for Benedictine High School.
The grand jury, consisting of nine members and five alternates, meets weekly. Its responsibilities are to protect innocent persons from needless accusations and to assure that evidence against the accused is considered fairly.
Throughout the threemonth term, the grand jury hears cases and decides whether the accused should be placed on trial for alleged criminal offenses which are usually felonies. It conducts itself in secrecy and its authority is independent of the prosecutor, according to a press release. In fact, it has the authority to launch an original investigation as its own action, and serves as a form of “checks and balances” on the prosecution and law enforcement. Among its duties is to inspect and report on conditions in the county jail, the release stated.
The grand jury does not decide on the guilt or innocence of an accused person. If a person is charged by the grand jury, his guilt or innocence is determined at a later trial by a petit jury.