Campaign phone
3309585588
Education
Wake Forest University School of Law, JD, 1987, Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL BA English 1984, St. Anne's College, Oxford University, Oxford England, summer 1982
Training/Experience
Judge McCarty was elected to a six-year term on the Summit County Common Pleas Court in November 2008 and was re-elected in 2014 and 2020. She presides over serious felony matters and major civil lawsuits. She is currently the Senior Judge serving on the Court’s General Division bench, and in addition to all of her other duties, serves as the Court’s Administrative Judge, overseeing the personnel, docket and calendar of the Court, which has approximately 175 employees. In addition to her regular docket, Judge McCarty presides over a Reentry Court Program, which strictly monitors certain offenders after they are released from the prison system, to improve their chances of a successful transition to a law-abiding lifestyle.
Website
keepjudgemccarty.com
Previous public office
Judge, Summit County Common Pleas Court, general Division, 2009- present, Akron Municipal Court Judge, 1999-2009, assistant Summit County prosecutor, 1989-1999
I began my career in the Summit County Probate Court as a clerk for Judge Bill Spicer. I then became an Attorney for Judge William Baird of the Ninth District Court of Appeals. I started as a Summit County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in 1989. During my ten-year career there, I handled thousands of cases, from low-level drug cases to death penalty murder trials.
I prosecuted some of the most sensitive and high profile cases in our county. I personally tried nearly one hundred jury trials, prosecuting murderers, robbers, and rapists, obtaining convictions in an overwhelming majority of those cases. I specialized in handling child physical and sexual abuse cases, as well as sexual assault cases. In my most notable case, I tried and convicted Captain Douglas Prade of the Akron Police Department of the Aggravated Murder of his ex-wife, Dr. Margo Prade, a prominent member of the community. That case received national attention, and has been featured on Dateline, HBO, I & D, and MSNBC.
I am running for re-election to my fourth term in this position. It has been my privilege to serve as your Common Pleas judge for the last eighteen years.
The courts faces many challenges, but we here in Summit County are working very hard to address them. Addiction-related crime continues to be a problem. We have numerous specialty courts that address problems such as addiction, mental health, and reentry-related issues. Our court remains progressive in using cutting-edge approaches and evidence-based best practices to address social issues.
Our court's docket is very large, and we struggle to stay ahead of the cases. Unfortunately, gun crimes lead to the senseless deaths of too many victims.
Judges must preside over the cases assigned to them. Our job is to be fair, efficient and competent in handling our docket. I strive every day to perform my job in such a manner so that everyone who appears in front of me feels seen and heard, and is treated with dignity and respect. However, if someone is convicted of a serious crime, I will impose serious consequences.
The greatest recurring obstacle to justice that I have seen in the last few years is the reluctance of victims to speak up and speak out. Many will report a crime, but many then recant or refuse to cooperate. This can be for many reasons, such as a relationship with the offender, or fear of retaliation, but sometimes the reason is because the victim wants to seek justice "on the streets". This just leads to more violence and the cycle is repeated.
