Ohio’s top justices squabble over placement of portrait

COLUMBUS — Behind the scenes, there is a brouhaha over where Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor’s painted portrait should be hung in the Ohio Judicial Center in downtown Columbus.

Judicial center staff, three Democrats and O’Connor agreed it should go in the Grand Concourse, the main hallway on the first floor. It’s a nod to O’Connor’s place in Ohio history as the first female chief justice and someone who served in statewide elected office longer than any other woman.

But the three Republican justices — Sharon Kennedy, Pat DeWine and Pat Fischer — voted against the prominent spot.

DeWine said the only portrait appropriate for the Grand Concourse is the late Thomas J. Moyer, the longtime chief justice for whom the building is named.

“I think decisions of this sort are best made with the wisdom that comes with time and should not be rushed through by a departing Justice at the end of the Justice’s tenure,” DeWine said.

Fischer said placing anything new or modern in the Grand Concourse “harms the historical value and beauty of that space.”

And Kennedy, who will succeed O’Connor as chief justice, said, “For good reasons, government buildings have restrictions on the naming of, the use of, and the placement of art. The historical Grand Concourse of the Supreme Court of Ohio is no exception.”

It’s the latest sign of a rift on the seven-member court. O’Connor, a Republican, sided with the Democrats on multiple rulings that rejected political maps. And she joined them on a ruling that said when setting cash bail, judges could only consider the likelihood that a defendant would return to court.

O’Connor’s alignment with the Democrats has put her on the outs with her own party. Lawmakers threatened to impeach her, and the Ohio GOP took her photo off the wall at its state headquarters.

O’Connor steps down Dec. 31. Age limits in the Ohio Constitution blocked her from seeking reelection. She commissioned the portrait, created by Cleveland artist Paul Wyse, and donated it to the state. The portrait will be unveiled at a ceremony on Friday.

Other historical figures whose images are in the Grand Concourse include eight presidents, nine U.S. Supreme Court justices, two speakers of the U.S. House and Moyer, who oversaw the building restoration and served as chief for 23 years until his death in 2010.