Off-Site Court Marks 30th Anniversary in Marietta
By Anne Yeager | October 20, 2017

It was a special homecoming for the Ohio Supreme Court this week.
They traveled to Marietta to hold an off-site session before nine area schools.
This was the first place the court traveled 30 years ago to bring the experience to places that otherwise may never see the justices hear oral arguments.

"I love it, I think it's so cool," said Marietta High School Senior Tess Paulson. "I know the Supreme Court is open and we can go in as the public. But we don't get a chance to do that. So having them come down here and give us this experience, it's really nice"
The seven justices started with a question and answer session.

"During the course of the campaign, I traveled about 110,000 miles in my car and met a lot of interesting people," said Justice Patrick DeWine.

One student asked how justices put their personal beliefs aside to decide cases.
"We take an oath to support the constitution and the laws of the state of Ohio," said Justice Terrence O'Donnell.

The students asked about the difficulties of being a judge and a politician, with the demands of campaigning.

"You need two things," said Justice Patrick Fischer. "You need a good car. And you have to love chicken because at every dinner, there's always chicken."

"They've got a sense of humor, I like that," said Marietta High School Senior Renee Austin. "They were really witty and came back very fast. That was funny and that's always a good thing to know. You are used to seeing them in a formal setting and they are very intelligent too."

They also offered some advice to the students.

"Follow your dreams," said Justice William O'Neill. "I didn't go to law school until I was 30 years old. And after 20 years, I went to nursing school and became a registered nurse. It was appealing to my inner self. You guys are about to start the adventure called life. Follow your dreams. It doesn't matter what you are doing today. What do you want to do tomorrow?"