Tony Cillo elected Lorain County Prosecutor over former boss J.D. Tomlinson

Lorain County voters chose a new county prosecutor as Republican Tony Cillo defeated incumbent Democrat J.D. Tomlinson in Tuesday's election. With all precincts reporting, Cillo was defeating Tomlinson by more than 20,000 votes, according to complete but unofficial results from the Lorain County Board of Elections. Cillo received 81,810 votes, or 57 percent, to 61,676 votes for Tomlinson, or 43 percent. Cillo is a former assistant Lorain County prosecutor and assistant Ohio attorney general who challenged Tomlinson, a Democrat and his former boss, for the job. The term of office is four years. Leading Tomlinson the entire night, Cillo hugged supporters in the parking lot of the Knights of Columbus on Kipling Street in Elyria as the second-to-last results came in, confirming his win. "I'm pleased that the people of this county paid attention to the issues and made their decision," Cillo said. "This is only the effort, in January we'll start the work." Tomlinson, who spent the night with supporters in Lorain, sent a concession statement to The Chronicle-Telegram. "I'd like to thank my supporters and the residents of Lorain County for giving me the opportunity to serve. In addition, I'd like to thank my staff for their exemplary service during my tenure as prosecutor. I remain proud of our accomplishments," he said. "Last, but certainly not least, I'd like to thank all of my friends and colleagues in law enforcement. It's been the greatest honor of my career to work with such talented and dedicated police officers. The county is lucky to have you." Cillo has 30 years of legal experience, mostly as a prosecutor. He briefly worked for the Ohio Attorney General's Office prosecuting felony cases around the state after leaving the Lorain County Prosecutor's Office, and he currently is associate director of the Lorain County Drug Task Force. Tomlinson was a criminal defense attorney in private practice before defeating former prosecutor Dennis Will in the 2020 Democratic primary. Tomlinson's first term in office, which started in 2021, has been embroiled in controversy over a $100,000 employment settlement he paid last year to his former client, employee and girlfriend Jennifer Battistelli. She has accused Tomlinson of physical and verbal abuse, some of it documented in videos Battistelli secretly took of their arguments. Tomlinson has denied ever hitting a woman. Tomlinson and his chief of staff, former judge James Burge, have been charged with felonies in Elyria Municipal Court — Tomlinson with intimidation, tampering with evidence and attempted bribery, and Burge with intimidation and tampering with evidence — for allegedly trying to get Battistelli to recant her allegations. James Barilla of Avon Lake, a Republican attorney, is suing Tomlinson in Common Pleas Court over the prosecutor's failure to produce public records related to the Battistelli settlement. Settlement negotiations are pending. Tomlinson and his supporters claim the Battistelli matter is retaliation by his political opponents — Barilla, Cillo, Will, Sheriff Phil Stammitti, Battistelli's attorney Kenneth Lieux, and Barilla's attorney Jonathan Rosenbaum among them — for his 2020 election victory and for dismissing the charges in the 1990s Head Start child abuse case. The charges against Joseph Allen and Nancy Smith were dismissed in 2022 by Judge Chris Cook at Tomlinson's request. Smith is suing Lorain County, the city of Lorain, several former Lorain police officers, the mother of one of the children in the case, and Rosenbaum for wrongful conviction in U.S. District Court. The case is pending before federal Judge David Ruiz. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.