Ohio Governor DeWine Appoints Attorney James Payne to the Vinton County Court of Common Pleas

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced the appointment of Republican attorney James Payne to the Vinton County Court of Common Pleas, General and Domestic Relations Division serving the Ross, Gallia, Jackson, Hocking, and Athens communities.

Judge-designee Payne, of McArthur, has been the Vinton County prosecutor for the past two-and-a-half years. Before that, he started his own law practice that year in South Point, a village consisting of about 3,500 individuals in Lawrence County, where he had lived most of his life after beginning his career as a judicial attorney in Lawrence County in 1994.

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Governor DeWine Nominates Anne Vogel for Director of the Ohio EPA

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced Wednesday that he is nominating Republican Anne Vogel to become the next director of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA). If the Ohio Senate confirms the nomination, Vogel will replace current director Laurie Stevenson who announced her retirement at the end of this year.

The Ohio EPA protects the environment and public health by enforcing environmental laws. According to DeWine, Vogel has the right experience for the job, and due to their history working together, she understands his priorities for the state.

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Exclusive: FBI Probing Ohio GOP Gubernatorial Candidate Blystone Campaign Finances Says Whistleblower’s Attorney

Joe Blystone

  In an exclusive interview with The Ohio Star, the lawyer representing a whistleblower and former co-campaign manager for Joseph K. Blystone‘s quest for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, Sarah Chambers that the Federal Bureau of Investigation agents are probing Blystone’s campaign finances. “Sarah and I met with them on Thursday, November 18, in their Columbus office,” said Scott A. Pullins, a Mount Vernon attorney whose practice has included representing many campaigns and campaign law compliance clients. Pullins also said Secretary of State Frank LaRose, and his Campaign Finance Division, received evidence of Blystone campaign finance misconduct and took no action. FBI reaches out to Chambers The graduate of The Ohio State University and the Capital University Law School said he also took note that FBI Special Agent Blaine Wetzel, one of the agents who interviewed Chambers that day, was listed as a virtual attendee at the December 16 Ohio Elections Commission hearing, where the commission reviewed the 51-page campaign finance complaint filed by Chambers and other former senior Blystone campaign staffers October 28 against Blystone, his wife, and campaign treasurer, M. Jane Blystone and his campaign committee Friends of Joe Blystone. In the complaint, Chambers, and others detailed how Blystone…

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