Highland County judge might be disbarred over con

Wednesday, May 21, 2008 3:06 AM
By James Nash

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Judge Jeffrey Hoskins of the Highland County Common Pleas Court tried to con a con artist, and now Hoskins might pay the price with his law license.

Hoskins' attorney told the Ohio Supreme Court yesterday that although the 60-year-old jurist got mixed up in some questionable financial dealings with a felon whom Hoskins had represented in a fraud case, his offenses don't warrant removal from the bench.

Hoskins' entanglement with David Bliss began in 1999, when the lawyer was hired by Bliss' parents to help shorten Bliss' prison term for felony credit-card fraud convictions.

When Bliss was released, he convinced Hoskins that he was wealthy and got the lawyer to loan Bliss' wife $25,000 for a joint business venture, according to court documents. Bliss then "repaid" Hoskins with a $25,000 check drawn from a closed account, the court records show.

In February 2003, Hoskins took office as Highland County's only common pleas judge.

Two years later, Hoskins bought a building in downtown Hillsboro in a transaction that also plays a key role in the case to remove him from office.

The Ohio Supreme Court's disciplinary counsel, which brought the case against Hoskins, accused the judge of hiding his ownership interest in the building because it was leased to the county's Adult Parole Authority.

The disciplinary counsel said Hoskins engineered a scheme to conceal his ownership of the building because it would pose a conflict of interest to take rent checks from the parole authority, which often comes before Hoskins' court.

The building reunited Hoskins with Bliss, whom he hadn't seen in years.

Apparently still determined to recover his $25,000, Hoskins met with Bliss in December 2005 to persuade Bliss to buy the Hillsboro building at an inflated price.

Hoskins, according to court transcripts, even counseled Bliss on how to keep the transaction secret and how to avoid money-laundering laws when transferring money from a bank account in England that Bliss purported to have.

Unknown to Hoskins, Bliss was wearing a wire, and the conversation was recorded by authorities.

In the Supreme Court hearing yesterday, Hoskins' attorney, George Jonson, insisted that the judge was trying to stay on the right side of the law in his conversations with Bliss.

"He was trying to, in essence, con the con," Jonson said.

The disciplinary counsel, Jonathan Coughlan, said Hoskins was trying to scam Bliss out of more than the $25,000 he was owed.

"Con the con? Absolutely," Coughlan said. "Scam the scam artist? Absolutely. About the $25,000? No."

If the Supreme Court boots Hoskins from the bench, he would be the fourth judge in Ohio to be disbarred in the past 50 years.

The court is expected to release its decision in several months.


The Highland County official tried to scama con artist who took $25,000 from him.

jnash@dispatch.com