The Ohio Bailiffs and Court Officers Association
Board of Directors

Bill Schmidt is currently employed for the Hamilton County Juvenile Court in Cincinnati Ohio. He has worked for the court since June 27, 1972. Bill has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from the Universityof Cincinnati. He began his employment at the court as a probation officer in the Counseling Division and in 1974 he became a supervisor with that division. In 1975, he became Court Officer for Judge David E. Grossmann and worked with Judge Grossmann until the Judge retired in 1998. Bill is currently the Court Officer for Judge Thomas R. Lipps in Hamilton County. He has been a member of the Ohio Bailiffs and Court Officers Association since 1998. Bill currently resides in Delhi Township, Ohio with his wife Patti and their two children, Laura and Brian.

 

Shawn Davis currently serves as Bailiff for Judge Howard H. Harcha III at the Scioto County Common Pleas Court. Until his appointment to the newly-formed Courthouse Security Committee in early 2005, he also performed Adult Probation duties including four years as Chief of Probation. Shawn was previously employed for eight years as a Scioto County Deputy Sheriff, attaining the rank of Sergeant and awarded Deputy of the Year. A member of the Scioto County Community Corrections Committee, he has also served as an instructor for the Ohio Peace Officers Training Academy and Ohio Supreme Court. Shawn received a Bachelor degree in Administration of Criminal Justice in March 2008 from Mountain State University. He has also received training at the United States Marshal Service Academy in Glynco, Georgia. Shawn resides in Lucasville, Ohio with his wife Sandra and their two children, Alex and Adam.

 

Thomas Mulgrew currently serves as a Lieutenant with the Cleveland Municipal Court, Bailiffs Division. Tom has been a member of the Ohio Bailiffs and Court Officers Association since his appointment to the Bailiffs Division in October of 1998. During his first five years with the Court, Tom was assigned to the General Division. Tom was reclassified to the position of Deputy Bailiff Warrant Officer and assigned to the Cleveland Municipal Court Greater Cleveland Drug Court Program Warrant Unit until his promotion to lieutenant in February 2006. Tom is a member of the Greater Cleveland Peace Officer Memorial Society and was the past treasurer and current trustee with the The Greater Cleveland Police Emerald Soceity. Tom resides in Cleveland, Ohio with his wife Kathleen (a Police and Fire Dispatcher for the City of North Olmsted ) and their 2 year old son, Quinn.

 

Jim Burkhardt retired from the Clark County Juvenile Court in Springfield, Ohio where he worked from 1995 to 2007 as Bailiff and Director of Court Security. He has been a member of the board of directors for the Ohio Bailiffs and Court Officers Association since 1997 and serves as a board member for the National Court Officers & Deputies Association, an affiliate of the National Sheriffs' Association. Jim is a graduate of the Ohio Peace Officers Training Academy and U.S. Marshals Training Academy for court security in Glynco, Georgia. Jim resides in Springfield with his wife of 39 years, Jane, and they have two grown children; Matthew, 36, and J. Michael, 32.

 

Lancaster resident, Roger T. Landis, was appointed as Treasurer on April 17, 2008. He will serve in this position as well as the Executive Director of the Association, which he was elected to in 2006.

Landis lives in Lancaster with his wife Connie. Roger and Connie have children and grandchildren living in Lancaster, Ashville, North Carolina, and Kentucky. He also has two great grandsons in Lancaster.

He retired from law enforcement after 29 years of service. He worked as a police officer in the City of Orrville, Ohio for two years. He left the Police Department and joined the Ohio State Highway Patrol where he served and additional 27 years and retired as a Captain. Landis also served ten years in the Ohio Army National Guard as an Officer.

After retiring from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Landis served as a Bailiff and Probation Officer in the Fairfield County Court of Common Pleas, also serving on the Court Security Committee.

Landis left the Court of Common Pleas and then worked for the Fairfield County Municipal Court as Bailiff and Chief of Security.

Roger worked for the Supreme Court of Ohio for one year after retiring from the local courts. He worked as a security contractor inspecting courts throughout the State.

During his time with the Courts, Landis began his affiliation with the Ohio Bailiffs & Court Officers Association and attending training seminars with that organization. Upon retiring from the Courts he has remained active with the Association.

 

Michelle currently serves as Chief Deputy Clerk/Chief Bailiff at the Vermilion Municipal Court. Michelle began working as a Paralegal/Secretary in 1991. In 2001, she was appointed Deputy Bailiff for Judge Elizabeth Wakefield at Vermillion Municipal Court. Shortly after this appointment, Michelle was made Chief Bailiff. In 2005, she was also given responsibility of the Chief Deputy Clerk position. Michelle and her husband of 32 years, Greg, have a son, Greg Jr., a daughter, Melissa, and two grandchildren.

 

Tom Chidester is a Deputy Sheriff and has been the Chief Court Constable for the Wood County Common Pleas Court in Bowling Green, Ohio since 1995. Tom was previously employed for eight years as a Trooper for the Ohio State Highway Patrol. A graduate of Toledo University, he is a certified instructor for the Ohio Peace Officers Training Academy. Tom has also completed training in the Ohio Court Security program and received training at the United States Marshal Service Academy in Glynco, Georgia.

 

Lancaster resident, Roger T. Landis, formerly of Wooster, was elected to Executive Director of the Ohio Bailiffs & Court Officers Association on April 1, 2006. Landis has been with the Association since 1996. He has served the Board of Directors as Regional Director, covering fifteen central Ohio counties, 1st Vice-President, President, Immediate Past President, and Assistant to Executive Director before this appointment.

Landis lives in Lancaster with his wife Connie. Roger and Connie have children and grandchildren living in Lancaster, Ashville, North Carolina, and Kentucky. He also has two great grandsons in Lancaster.

He retired from law enforcement after 29 years of service. He worked as a police officer in the City of Orrville, Ohio for two years. He left the Police Department and joined the Ohio State Highway Patrol where he served and additional 27 years and retired as a Captain. Landis also served ten years in the Ohio Army National Guard as an Officer.

After retiring from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Landis served as a Bailiff and Probation Officer in the Fairfield County Court of Common Pleas, also serving on the Court Security Committee.

Landis left the Court of Common Pleas and then worked for the Fairfield County Municipal Court as Bailiff and Chief of Security.

Roger worked for the Supreme Court of Ohio for one year after retiring from the local courts. He worked as a security contractor inspecting courts throughout the State.

During his time with the Courts, Landis began his affiliation with the Ohio Bailiffs & Court Officers Association and attending training seminars with that organization. Upon retiring from the Courts he has remained active with the Association.

 

This position is currently vacant.

 

Horst Wudi is the Bailiff for the Fulton County Common Pleas Court and also serves as an Adult Probation Officer. He has worked for the Court since 1999. His wife, Randi Wudi, works for the Fulton County Court - Western District. They have two children.

 

Allen currently serves as the Chief of Security for the Bailiff's Department of Cleveland Municipal Court and has been employed by the Court for more than nineteen years. He attended Cuyahoga Community College and Garfield Senior College earning an Associates Degree in Law Enforcement. Allen is married to Maryann, his wife of twenty-nine years, and they have three children.

Bill was appointed as a Deputy Bailiff at the Medina Municipal Court in May of 1985 and was promoted to Bailiff in June of that same year. A graduate of Norton High School, Bill attended the University of Missouri at Columbia and the University of Akron where he received a bachelor's degree, cum laude, and he maintains an Ohio teaching certificate in History/American Government. Bill has also received Bailiff's training from the Ohio Peace Officers Training Academy and attended training at the International Association of Court Officers and Services in Bowling Green, Kentucky and St. Louis, Missouri. A life member of the Ohio Bailiffs and Court Officers Association since 1985, he has served the Association as a Regional Representative, First Vice President, and assisted in hosting a conference in the Akron area. Bill has also served on the Court Personnel & Training Committee for the Supreme Court of Ohio from 1993 to 2003, and has worked in news, public affairs, and religious broadcasting at northeast Ohio radio and television stations. A native of Akron, Ohio, Bill now resides in Cuyahoga Falls with his wife, Regina, a nurse at Akron General Hospital, and his golden retriever, Sir James Golden of Hampton. Bill has two sons, Jed, a physician in Arizona, and Michael, a sophomore attending the University of Akron.

 

Bill is a Deputy Sheriff and Supervisor of Court Security for both the Licking County Common Pleas Court and Domestic Court. He has been in law enforcement for 30 years and a bailiff for 25 years, which includes 3 years in Municipal Court. Bill has been a member of the Ohio Bailiffs & Court Officers Association since 1979.

 

Jim currently serves as the Chief Bailiff for Criminal & Civil Bailiffs for Hamilton County Municipal Court. He has worked for the Bailiffs office since July 1980. Prior to being employed by the court, he worked at the State Department for the United States Marine Corps providing security for Embassies and State Department employees mostly in the Middle East. Jim has been a member of the Ohio Bailiffs and Court Officers Association since 1985. Jim resides in Green Township with his wife Deborah. He has 3 children and 6 grandchildren. Jim enjoys traveling and his grandchildren.

 

This position is currently vacant.

 

Larry Lute has been employed by the Scioto County Common Pleas Court since April of 2006. Previously, he was employed through Millwright Local #1241 for 17 years and has been President of Independent Inspection Services, Inc. the past 5 years. Larry completed the Ohio Police Officer Training Academy course through the Southern Ohio Police Academy in September 2006. Larry resides in Lucasville, Ohio with his wife of 17 years, Kathy, and their two children, Derreck and Jacob. He enjoys hunting with his sons and driving a dirt modified racecar.

 

Retired at the rank of Staff Lieutenant for the Ohio State Highway Patrol in 2000, Eric has been serving as the Webmaster for the Ohio Bailiffs & Court Officers Association since April 2004.