Ohio Politics | Criminal probes

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BCI probe of area state rep finds ‘concerning and suspicious’ behavior, raises concerns with case handling

State Representative Rodney Creech speaks during a meeting with Butler County Commissioners to discuss property taxes with state legislators and other elected officials Monday, June 24, 2024 in Hamilton. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

Credit: Nick Graham

• The story: A state investigation of alleged sexual misconduct involving state Rep. Rodney Creech, R-West Alexandria, and a minor teenage female this news organization has chosen not to identify concluded in October with no criminal charges but findings of “concerning and suspicious” behavior by the state lawmaker, a Dayton Daily News investigation found.

• ‘Dereliction of duty’: While no charges were filed, investigative records obtained by the Dayton Daily News raise questions about how Preble County Sheriff Mike Simpson and then-prosecutor Martin Votel — who both later recused themselves from the case due to their relationships with Creech — originally handled the allegation.

• Creech responds: “I’m deeply disappointed to see my political opponents dig up an old false allegation, for which a law enforcement investigation cleared my name. It seems to be no coincidence that this political smear piece is appearing just days after I announced my campaign for Ohio Senate,” Creech told this outlet one day after announcing his campaign and several days after this outlet reached out to him for comment.

• Fallout: Creech was removed from all of his committee posts and asked to resign by Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman, R-Lima. “(I) told him that this, on its face, was very serious and I did not think that he could fill out his duties effectively as a legislator with this in the public sphere,” Huffman said.

• Here’s our full investigation and here’s a followup story about how the Ohio House reacted to the news.

Montgomery County judge pleads guilty, to resign from bench

Suspended Montgomery County Municipal Court Judge James Piergies is arraigned Monday morning, Aug. 19, 2024, before a visiting judge in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court. JIM NOELKER/STAFF

Credit: Jim Noelker

• The story: Montgomery County Municipal Court Judge James Piergies has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of obstructing official business in exchange for more serious felony charges and allegations of misusing his public office being dropped, according to court records.

• Sentence: Piergies was sentenced to up to two years of community control and 75 hours of community service. A 90-day jail sentence is suspended based on compliance with the community control sanctions. Piergies is also ordered to pay court costs and a $750 fine.

• Charges: Piergies was charged in July 2024 in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court. Piergies’ charges relate to the employment of his son, Robert, who told Dayton Daily News that his father arranged for municipal court money to fund the son’s IT position at the Montgomery County Clerk of Courts office.

• Resignation: As part of the plea deal, Piergies is resigning from the bench, according to the Ohio Auditor of State’s office, which led the investigation and prosecution of the case. Piergies was charged in July 2024 in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court along with Montgomery County Clerk of Courts Mike Foley.

• Here’s the full story from Sydney Dawes and Josh Sweigart; and here’s a follow up story about Piergies’ sentencing hearing.

Local political news of the week

Paul Bradley, the executive director of Montgomery County Lank Bank, speaks during an event on Thursday on Glenelle Drive in Dayton. The Land Bank was awarded $6.96 million from Ohio Department of Development to expand home ownership opportunities to income-eligible residents. BRYANT BILLING / STAFF

Credit: Bryant Billing

• Land bank’s investments: Forty new homes will be built in the Madden Hills, Fairview, Wolfcreek and Dayton View Triangle neighborhoods over the next year, with another 24 houses slated to undergo rehabilitation as a part of a $17 million Montgomery County Land Bank program. Here’s Sydney Dawes with the story.

• Nightclub-turned-police outpost: The city of Dayton plans to purchase an old nightclub and an adjacent property to build a new downtown police station a short walk from the Oregon District and the downtown bus hub. Here’s Cornelius Frolik and Samantha Wildow.

• Co-responders: Five local communities have agreed to work with the Miami Valley Communications Council to improve public safety and provide better support for people struggling with opioid addiction and mental health issues. Here’s Eric Schwartzberg.

State political news of the week

A crowd of supporters gather to hear Vivek Ramaswamy announce his candidacy for Ohio governor at this first of two-day, four-stop announcement tour Monday, Feb. 24, 2025 at CTL Aerospace in West Chester Twp. MICHAEL D. PITMAN/STAFF

Credit: Michael D. Pitman

• Like a gov: The Ohio Republican Party voted to officially endorse Vivek Ramaswamy in the 2026 gubernatorial race, picking the Trump ally over the state’s sitting Attorney General Dave Yost — and preempting others who might enter the race, such as Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel. Here’s my story.

• Screen limits: The Ohio Senate passed a measure this week that would generally prohibit Ohio K-12 students from using cellphones during the school day.The Gov. Mike DeWine-backed bill now heads to the Ohio House for further consideration. Here’s my story.

• ‘Right to try’: Some Ohio lawmakers want to establish protections for patients who receive alternative treatments or prescriptions from doctors outside of a facility at which they may be hospitalized following COVID-era conflicts between hospital protocols and patients who wanted to try alternative treatments like Ivermectin. Samantha Wildow has the story.

• Prescribed regulation: Another bill in the Ohio House seeks to regulate pharmacy benefit managers, also called PBMs, which have large influence on how much drugs cost through negotiating rebates with drug manufacturers. Samantha Wildow again has the details.

National political news of the week

Troy E. Meink appears before the Senate Armed Services Committee for his nomination to be secretary of the Air Force in Washington, D.C., March 27, 2025. (DoD photo by EJ Hersom)

Credit: Defense.gov

• Local ties: Newly-confirmed Secretary of the Air Force Troy E. Meink has extensive ties to Wright-Patterson Air Force base, serving as a flight test engineer and deputy program manager from 1994 to 1998 and an employee at the base’s research laboratory.Thomas Gnau has the story.

• Overdoses down: A huge drop in overdose deaths in Ohio, West Virginia and other states were influential in the country’s largest-everone-year decline in overdose deaths in 2024. The Associated Press has the story.

• Taxing the wealthy: Trump says he would be OK with raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans to help pay for his domestic agenda. National news outlets this week reported that Trump called House Speaker Mike Johnson about a tax hike and proposed a cut for small business owners. But in a Truth Social post, Trump said “Republicans should probably not do it.” Sydney Dawes has that and much more federal news in here weekly roundup.

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