Former Portsmouth city councilman and lawyer Michael Mearan was ordered to house arrest during a Friday court hearing after Judge Patricia Cosgrove ruled he violated the conditions of his bond by taking on new clients.
Cosgrove said she would be within her rights to send 75-year-old Mearan back to jail for violating the order.
"This is a small community," Cosgrove said, and a lawyer charged with first-degree felonies continuing to practice law "presents a real issue."
Mearan, who in December began submitting filings for himself in the case charging him with 18 counts spanning human trafficking, racketeering and compelling and promoting prostitution, is no longer representing himself, according to court records. He was brought into the Common Pleas courtroom Friday in a wheelchair, accompanied by his two daughters and newly obtained counsel, Michael Siewert of Siewert & Gjostein Co. LPA in Columbus.
More: Prosecutors: Michael Mearan 'should not be permitted to use the courtroom as a weapon'
More: ‘Untouchable’ attorney arrested, charged with human trafficking
Mearan is accused of arranging sex-for-hire appointments for female clients he was hired to counsel and pocketing the money they earned at those meetings, according to court documents. He manipulated and demeaned the women, made them "crawl like dogs," verbally abused them and made one woman feel like a "dirty piece of s--t," prosecutors said.
Mearan has consistently denied the allegations, which were first reported in March 2019 by The Enquirer after the newspaper investigated claims of sex trafficking in the city 104 miles east of Cincinnati along the Ohio River.
More: 'It's not that we weren't trying.' Why it took decades to arrest Michael Mearan
Authorities arrested Mearan on Oct. 23, a Friday. He was arraigned the following Monday, retained on a $300,000 bond and released on bond that Wednesday morning.
Judge Cosgrove set conditions for Mearan's release, including electronic monitoring, restrictions on when he can leave his home and a prohibition from contacting any alleged victims or witnesses in the case.
Days later, Cosgrove filed a court order with an additional condition, stating that Mearan, should he post bond, may not accept any new clients while his case remains active. But Scioto County court records showed Mearan had approximately 50 open cases in early February.
On Feb. 3, during a hearing on a civil case, Mearan told the court "as far as I know, I'm authorized to practice law," according to court documents.
Two days later the Ohio Supreme Court suspended Mearan's law license "for an interim period." The state attorney discipline board said it had credible evidence Mearan "engaged in human trafficking of at least five of his vulnerable clients…and poses a substantial threat of serious harm to the public.”
State prosecutors Jennifer Rausch and Joel King filed a motion in early March requesting Cosgrove revoke Mearan's bond for failure to comply with the conditions set during his October arraignment.
'He's not giving straight answers here'
On Friday, Judge Cosgrove and prosecutors Rausch and King attended the hearing virtually while Mearan and Siewert sat side by side in the courtroom.
King said prosecutors were notified by Portsmouth Municipal Court that Mearan had filed on behalf of new clients since posting bond instead of trying to "wrap up" his practice. Siewert argued those clients had requested Mearan's help prior to the court order, and Mearan has not taken on "new" cases.
Cosgrove read the transcript from the Feb. 3 civil case hearing, in which Mearan told the court "this is a new case." Mearan then "danced around" answering questions about his ability to practice law, Cosgrove said.
"He's not giving straight answers here," Cosgrove said after reading the transcript. "...That's, to me, offensive conduct."
Siewert told Cosgrove Mearan would agree to house arrest, and that his only request is that he could still attend a Passover seder this Saturday with his Rabbi.
"I'm grateful to be able to spend time with Mr. Siewert preparing this case. It's been a year, I'm just looking forward to doing that," Mearan said to Cosgrove. "Thank you for the opportunity to be restricted to my house."
Mearan is now constricted to his home, Cosgrove said. The house arrest order has three exceptions: doctor appointments, Passover seder and meetings with counsel.
Kadie Lancaster, the sister-in-law of Megan Lancaster, who went missing in 2013, attended the Friday hearing. She told The Enquirer she won't feel safe until Mearan is behind bars. The Lancasters believe Mearan was involved in Megan Lancaster's disappearance.
Following the hearing, Mearan walked across the street from the courthouse, with his daughters and Siewert, to his home. He hugged Siewert before heading inside.
"That does not make me feel safe. It does not make my girls feel safe, the girls that have stood up and said this is wrong, we want change," Lancaster said. "That does not make them feel safe. I am going fight back."
Cosgrove set a pretrial date for May 7 at 2 p.m.
If you or someone you know needs help
National Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-888-373-7888
Drug Helpline: 1-888-633-3239
If you know more about these allegations, please reach out to The Enquirer at [email protected].
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