Former assistant prosecutor hired

Former Assistant Geauga County Prosecutor is now a parttime magistrate for Probate/ Juvenile Court Judge.

Former Assistant Geauga County Prosecutor J.A. Miedema is now a part-time magistrate for Geauga County Probate/Juvenile Court Judge Timothy J. Grendell.

Miedema was an assistant prosecutor for 12 years, where she served as counsel for the Geauga County Child Support Enforcement Division.

She set several records in the establishment and enforcement of child support obligations, both in civil matters and criminal prosecutions, with cooperation and collaboration from the child support division, Geauga County judges and magistrates , the Sheriff’s Department and Prosecutor’s Office.

Miedema indicted more than 110 people between May 2010 and January 2017 for failing to pay ordered child support.

She also presented more than 60 complaints for people who neglected to pay ordered child support from 2013 to 2016. As a result, hundreds of thousands of additional dollars were collected for the support of Geauga County’s children.

Regarding civil enforcement, Miedema and her collaborators were responsible for a never before seen record eight years of performance pursuant to the standards established by the state and federal governments, officials said.

“The Juvenile Court has seen a continual rise in child support cases during my time on the bench, which result in persistent increases in the judicial time required to adjudicate them appropriately,” Grendell said of the need for the new magistrate. “The addition of a magistrate with such specialized knowledge and experience … will facilitate the court’s expedient adjudication of child support cases, and allow me to dedicate judicial time and attention to and rehabilitating juvenile behavioral issues, and the increasing Probate Court workload. This will result in improved services for Geauga County seniors and families.”