For Stow Municipal Court

The Stow Municipal Court has traveled a bumpy path the past year. The court moved its operations from Cuyahoga Falls. No surprise the change ruffled political feathers. Cuyahoga Falls responded by launching its own mayor's court, depleting, significantly, funds flowing into the municipal court, putting a strain on the city of Stow's finances.

Now Lisa Coates, one of the judges driving the move, is seeking re-election to a second, six-year term. Part of evaluating Coates involves assessing the change in location. More important is her performance in the courtroom. In that way, especially, she has earned another term. She is fair, timely and has a sound temperament, understanding the mission of the court, part legal institution, part social agency.

We recommend the re-election of Lisa Coates on Nov. 3. All in all, the move to Stow was justified. The municipal court needed new facilities. (Other municipal courts in the state, including Akron, require such an upgrade.) If the Falls had not jumped to set up an outmoded mayor's court, the transition in Stow would have been relatively smooth. As it is, Coates and her colleague on the bench, Kim Hoover, mostly have done a solid job handling the change.

Coates is thinking about the future, planning for a mental health court, filling an important need yet doing so in a way tailored to the suburban communities in the Stow court district, covering much of northern Summit County. The approach builds on her work as a judge, tough when required yet aware that one size hardly fits all.

Her opponent is Adam Van Ho, an assistant state attorney general and a former assistant county prosecutor. He is intelligent, dedicated and energetic. He argues that in the court's move, Coates largely has been the puppet of Judge Hoover. The criticism doesn't ring true. Coates has plenty of independence. She also is the better choice in this race.