The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Bench familiar for new judge
Malchesky settles in as Painesville Municipal Court judge, where he served as acting judge for 15 years
Much of Paul Malchesky’s professional life has revolved around a small stretch of Painesville. From the windows in his chambers he can see the law office where he spent his entire career before being elected Painesville Municipal Court judge.
Malchesky’s history in the area predates even his legal career. Down the street from the law office is the Lake County Juvenile Court where his grandfather Richard A. Hoose served as the division’s first full-time judge.
The juvenile detention facility was built when he was a kid and Malchesky said he helped test it out: trying the food, using the gym’s workout
equipment. When it first opened there was even a boxing ring. His grandfather thought it would be beneficial for the kids.
“It was really kind of a unique experience,” he said of growing up with a grandfather as a judge. His grandfather also served as Willoughby Municipal Court Judge. “I learned a lot. I became comfortable with the legal profession.”
His grandfather was encouraging of his legal aspirations.
“Certainly it was very comfortable to come into the profession simply because the intangible knowledge of things you just don’t get in law school — familiarity the courtroom and the procedures, familiarity with the people you practice with and against.”
Malchesky, 47, a lifelong Concord Township resident, had no trouble familiarizing himself with the Painesville Municipal Court bench. He spent 15 years as an acting judge in the court, filling in when Judge Michael Cicconetti was unavailable.
Malchesky was elected the municipal court judge in the November election, defeating James O’Leary, who was appointed by Gov. Mike DeWine as the court’s judge following Cicconetti’s retirement in late-September.
He took the bench for the first time as judge Dec. 2, the Monday after Thanksgiving.
Malchesky said things are going well so far. Giving up his law practice and saying goodbye to Concord Township and the Morley Library (where he served as trustee) and Laketran (where he served as legal counsel) wasn’t easy.
“Those were all significant items to give up,” he said. “But once you dive in here and start taking on tasks, it fills your time.” Once used to having meetings every night, the new job has cleared up his evenings.
“I’m at the kids’ events now,” he noted.
The “unique” Cicconetti left big shoes to fill, Malchesky said.
“I would say that the first couple weeks, he still had a large presence here, and I think he still has a large presence here,” Malchesky said. “Meaning he may not be here, but you certainly remember how he did things. But he was always a great mentor. He was always very encouraging.”
Malchesky recalls an article that was written about Cicconetti some time ago. In the article, Cicconetti relays advice he had gotten from another judge.
“You’re the judge, you make the decisions now,” the judge told Cicconetti and then hung up the phone.
That judge was Malchesky’s grandfather. That advice is stuck in his mind, too.
“What you do or don’t do is on your shoulders, so keep that in mind,” Malchesky said.
Cicconetti was well known for his creative sentences. Over the course of his more than two decades on the bench, he would occasionally offer alternatives to jail time for select defendants.
One time, a man who called a police officer a pig was ordered to stand on a street corner with a pig and a sign that read, “This is not a police officer.” In one of his last examples, a teen who admitted to vandalizing a caboose painted a railing outside of the court with a toothbrush.
Malchesky said it is something he’s considering continuing in the right circumstances.
“They certainly serve a certain purpose,” he said. “They’re there not to demean the person or the offense, but if used wisely and appropriately, they’re there to discourage similar behavior.”
While he is considering creative sentences on a case-by-case basis, Malchesky inherited something else from Cicconetti — his staff.
“To me this has always been one of the best municipal courts to practice in,” he said. “And as a practicing attorney who is representing clients, you’re looking for something that is fast, and efficient, and very responsive. I’m lucky to be blessed with a staff that sees it the same way I see it and better yet performs at such a high level.”
“Certainly it was very comfortable to come into the profession simply because the intangible knowledge of things you just don’t get in law school — familiarity the courtroom and the procedures, familiarity with the people you practice with and against.”
—Painesville Municipal Court Judge Paul Malchesky