An Ohio Republican Supreme Court candidate is facing scrutiny after claiming on the campaign trail that she was never nominated by a Democrat, despite evidence to the contrary.

Former Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Colleen O'Donnell's comments have raised questions about her transparency and credibility in a crowded May primary. The upcoming race offers Republicans the chance to unseat the state's last Democratic justice, Jennifer Brunner, and secure a 7-0 conservative majority on the court.

'Ohio voters deserve clear, factual information about the record of anyone seeking a seat on the Supreme Court of Ohio.'

Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R), who refused to vote for either presidential candidate in the 2016 election and announced his endorsement of Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 election, appointed O'Donnell in May 2013 to fill a vacancy on the Franklin County Common Pleas Court. She lost her re-election bid to a Democrat in 2022. In August 2023, the Biden administration appointed O’Donnell as a U.S. immigration judge in Laredo, Texas.

"In Laredo, I faced the worst of the worst — drug traffickers, human smugglers, and violent gang members," O'Donnell stated when announcing her Ohio Supreme Court run in October. "I was proud to protect our communities from dangerous individuals, but I was also frustrated by how broken the system was. Too often, laws weren't enforced. That lawlessness still echoes across our courts today."

During a January interview, O'Donnell stated that she was "assigned to serve" in Laredo, which she noted was "about 1,500 miles from my home and my family here in Columbus."

"I was presiding over asylum cases day after day after day. And I honored my oath and obligation to interpret the immigration law with impartiality and with integrity and resolve those asylum cases as efficiently as I could," she said.

O'Donnell explained that she left the Laredo position "after six or eight months," adding that the travel and time away from family were "pretty difficult."

Her campaign website describes her as "a constitutional conservative with extensive judicial experience at every level of government." It notes that as a U.S. immigration judge, she "handled illegal entry and asylum cases during the height of the border crisis."

O'Donnell's website claims that she "enforced the law as written," "never once granted asylum," and "consistently ordered the removal of illegal aliens from our country."

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In early March, the Ohio Conservatives PAC accused O'Donnell of lying to voters about her immigration judge appointment.

The PAC shared an audio clip of O'Donnell's speech from a March 2 lunch with legislators event for the Greene County Republican Party, during which she accused her opponents of "mischaracterizing" her background and qualifications.

"Because I value transparency and the truth, I want to be crystal clear: I was never appointed by Joe Biden, or any other Democrat, to serve as an immigration judge, or in any other role I've ever had in my career," O'Donnell stated in the clip.

Two event attendees confirmed the authenticity of the audio to Blaze News.

One of those individuals, Setys Kelly, who is running for State Central Committee, told Blaze News, "I’m thankful that the Republican Club of Greene County has these meetings that give you a chance to ask these questions of the candidates. And more people should take advantage of that because that’s how you find out the things that you want to know, instead of somebody repeating it on Facebook or social media — you never really know if it’s true. But you can ask the question here and hope to get a final answer.”

A Department of Justice notice from August 2023 confirmed that the Democratic administration of then-President Joe Biden appointed O'Donnell.

"Today, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland officially appointed the following individuals as immigration judges," the DOJ notice reads, listing 38 names, including "Colleen O'Donnell."

The PAC further highlighted O'Donnell's claim that she never granted asylum.

"O'Donnell claims she never granted asylum one time. Well, that could be because she only served for a handful of months and quit before she completed her entire training program and probationary period," the PAC stated, contending that it was unlikely she oversaw any case from start to finish.

"For the last eight months Colleen O'Donnell has lied to Republicans about her appointment to the Biden Department of Justice," Cameron Brady, a spokesman for Ohio Conservatives PAC, told Blaze News. "The record shows that during her very brief stint for the Biden administration, she wasn't a tough on the border judge, but rather just another Biden flunky taking marching orders to catch and release dozens of illegal immigrants into the interior of our country. O'Donnell's forced to lean on her four-month stint as an immigration judge because unlike her three opponents who are actually judges, O'Donnell has been unemployed for going on three years."

Immigration judge record

A Department of Justice Executive Office for Immigration Review dataset of O'Donnell's decisions as an immigration judge shows that in roughly 25% of the hearings in which the person appeared, O'Donnell ruled in their favor, allowing them to remain in the country rather than be deported.

In two of the 14 credible fear review cases she ruled on, O'Donnell overturned immigration officers' decisions that the individuals lacked credible fear. Doing so allows individuals to pursue asylum or other forms of deportation protections.

In nine cases, she granted relief from removal, enabling those individuals to remain in the U.S. through some form of approved protection or status change. The available judicial datasets do not specify the exact type of relief granted; however, they may include options such as asylum, cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, or other forms of relief.

In one case, where the individual may not have been eligible for full asylum, O'Donnell ruled that deportation to his or her home country would pose a danger, thereby permitting the individual to stay in the U.S.

Two other cases were terminated without a deportation order, which can occur when the government withdraws charges, the charges are defective, or the individual qualifies for legal status through an alternative pathway.

O'Donnell's campaign declined requests to clarify these rulings, only insisting that she never granted asylum.

"Colleen O'Donnell had a distinguished career as a Common Pleas Court judge and federal immigration judge, where she never once granted asylum. Our campaign team will not dignify these kinds of allegations. We have no further comment on this matter," Amy Natoce, O'Donnell's campaign adviser, told Blaze News.

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Ohio Republicans react

In the Republican primary for Ohio Supreme Court, O'Donnell is running against three other candidates: Andrew King, Jill Flagg Lanzinger, and Ronald Lewis. The election is scheduled for May 5. The winner will face off on November 3 against Brunner, who currently holds the seat.

Lewis, a judge on Ohio's Second District Court of Appeals, told Blaze News, "Although I am not in a position to make a judgment on the truthfulness of this particular statement from Ms. O'Donnell, I do believe it would be valuable for Republican primary voters to receive a thorough explanation from O'Donnell on how she was appointed to the position, how her tenure as an immigration judge went, and how she arrived at the decisions she made while serving in that role."

"The enforcement and application of immigration law was certainly different in 2023 than it has been since the inauguration of President Trump, and voters deserve to know O'Donnell's role in immigration enforcement during her time as an appointee in the Department of Justice during Merrick Garland's tenure as director," Lewis added.

King, a judge for the Ohio Fifth District Court of Appeals, said in a statement to Blaze News, "The next justice needs to be rock solid in their judicial background and philosophy. I am the type of constitutional conservative judge Trump would appoint. We need a judge who the Trump administration would appoint, not a judge that the Biden administration did appoint."

State Rep. Meredith Craig (R), who has endorsed King, told Blaze News, "Ohio voters deserve clear, factual information about the record of anyone seeking a seat on the Supreme Court of Ohio. It's a matter of public record that Merrick Garland, serving as Attorney General under Joe Biden, appointed Colleen O'Donnell."

"And the facts don't stop there. According to available case data, Colleen O'Donnell presided over 110 immigration cases, transferring 35 into the interior of the United States. Of those, 28 involved individuals who were never detained or were released. This aligns with what has commonly been described as 'catch-and-release' policies during the Biden administration," Craig continued. "These are facts voters can and should consider as they evaluate candidates for one of the highest courts in our state."

Flagg Lanzinger and the Ohio Republican Party did not respond to a request for comment.

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