A Delaware County judge is being asked to step away from the bench amidst allegations that he sexually assaulted an assistant prosecuting attorney and showed up at her apartment to pressure her into having sex.
Delaware County Common Pleas Court Judge James P. Schuck has been accused of forcing the victim to perform two acts of sexual contact with him, according to a copy of a civil stalking protection order filed Nov. 25 in county Common Pleas Court.
Retired Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge Richard Frye, appointed by the Ohio Supreme Court to oversee the Delaware County matter, granted the protection order after holding an ex-parte hearing on the complaint, court records show.
According to the copy of the request for protection order, Schuck forced the victim to engage in sex acts on May 13. On at least two additional occasions, Schuck showed up to her Delaware apartment and tried forcing her to have sex, the complaint reads. The victim claimed that Schuck did this even though he previously acknowledged and apologized for “pressuring and scaring her” into sex.
The victim also asks that Schuck cease recording and secretly watching her through the court’s security and CCTV systems, and to stop distributing videos to other people.
Common Pleas Court Judge Marianne Hemmeter, who is the only other general division judge in the county and currently the administrative judge, called on Schuck to step away from the bench while investigators look into what she called “serious allegations” against him.
“Everyone in government is fully accountable to the public trust, and judges must be even more accountable,” Hemmeter said in an emailed statement. “When we take the judicial oath, we accept the higher obligation to foster public trust and comply with ethical standards, policies, and the law.
“In light of the allegations, today I call on Judge Schuck to step aside, take a leave of absence, and allow visiting judges to handle his docket,” Hemmeter said. “Until this matter is fully resolved, such a move would benefit all involved and would show the people we serve that we’re serious about doing the right thing.”
Schuck did not immediately respond to a request from The Dispatch for comment.
Paul Scarsella, an attorney for the victim, declined to comment on the allegations.
The Office of Disciplinary Counsel, an arm of the Ohio Supreme Court, is also investigating the case, The Dispatch has learned. The office investigates and prosecutes attorneys, judges and magistrates accused of ethical misconduct. All attorneys and judicial officers must follow the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct, while judges and magistrates must also follow the Code of Judicial Conduct.
Who is James P. Schuck?
Schuck was elected to a seat on the Delaware County Common Pleas Court in November 2018 and took office on Jan. 1, 2019, according to his bio on the Delaware County Common Pleas Court website. He was reelected to another term in November 2024.
Before taking the bench, he worked for 17 years at the Bricker Graydon law firm, where he worked on general commercial litigation, election litigation, and class action lawsuits.
Schuck is a member of the Ohio Judicial Conference, the Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association, and the Delaware County Bar Association. He served as Presiding Judge of the Common Pleas Court in 2021 and 2025 and Administrative Judge of the General Division in 2020, 2021, 2024, and 2025.
Judge Schuck received his bachelor’s degree from Bowling Green State University and his law degree from Capital University Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude and was a member of the Executive Board of the Capital University Law Review.
This is breaking news story. Check back at Dispatch.com for more updates.
Reporter Shahid Meighan can be reached at smeighan@dispatch.com, at ShahidMeighan on X, and at shahidthereporter.dispatch.com on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Delaware County judge accused of sexually assaulting assistant prosecutor
Reporting by Shahid Meighan, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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