Cincinnati City Councilman Wendell Young pleads not guilty, first court appearance waived
Special prosecutor asking Ohio Supreme Court to suspend Wendell Young from city council By Jennifer Edwards Baker | April 30, 2021 at 7:46 AM EDT - Updated April 30 at 11:05 AM
CINCINNATI, OH (FOX19) - Cincinnati City Councilman Wendell Young entered a written plea of not guilty Thursday to a felony tampering with records charge ahead of his arraignment Friday.
He also received permission from a special prosecutor to waive his first court appearance at 8:30 a.m. Friday and will remain free on his own recognizance, court records show.
The case is scheduled to return to court for a scheduling conference May 12 before Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge Robert Ruehlman, other court documents state.
Cincinnati City Councilman Wendell Young entered a plea of not guilty on Thursday.
Young, a Democrat, was indicted earlier this month with the felony tampering charge and is facing up to three years in prison.
In a statement, Patrick Hanley, the special prosecutor who has been investigating Young for more than a year, said that between January and October of 2018, Young knowingly and with the purpose to defraud, destroyed text messages that belonged to a government entity.
Last week, Hanley told Fox 19 he plans to ask the Ohio Supreme Court to initiate suspension proceedings against Young.
Under state law, Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor would then appoint a panel of judges to review evidence in the case and decide whether to suspend Young.
Cincinnati City Councilman Wendell Young has been indicted on a single charge stemming from a three-year-old texting scandal.
A Hamilton County grand jury on Thursday charged Young with tampering with records, a third-degree felony punishable by up to three years in prison.
In a statement, Patrick Hanley, the special prosecutor who has been investigating Young for more than a year, said that between January and October of 2018, Young knowingly and with the purpose to defraud, destroyed text messages that belonged to a government entity.
Hanley told The Enquirer this marks the end of his investigation into the Gang of Five case. None of the other four council members accused of illegally texting with each other will be criminally charged.
Some candidates and supporters might protest Tuesday as the Hamilton County Board of Elections makes official the list of candidates for Cincinnati mayor.
The four-member board of elections, composed of two Republicans and two Democrats, will certify the candidates petitions Tuesday morning in a meeting at the board of elections headquarters in Norwood.
The BOE staff found three candidates didn t gather enough valid signatures: City Councilman Wendell Young, tech entrepreneur Adam Koehler and activist Kelli Prather.
At least one of the candidates, Kelli Prather, 48, from Madisonville, plans on contesting that finding
. She fell 56 signatures short of 500, according to BOE staff.