Case forwarded to Wood County

An underage possession/consumption case was dismissed from Tiffin-Fostoria Municipal Court this week after an appointed special prosecutor filed a motion requesting the case be forwarded to another county. According to court documents, the case against Alexander J. Ratchen, 20, of Tiffin, was dismissed after special prosecutor Robert Feighner Jr. filed a motion stating all law enforcement reports regarding the case do not establish venue in the jurisdiction of Fostoria Municipal Court. The motion also states because case law does not support continued prosecution in the court, the case will be forwarded to Wood County for proper review by its prosecuting attorneys. Ratchen had been charged with the offense earlier this year in connection to a single-vehicle accident Oct. 27, 2012, on TR 71A. The accident, which involved speed and alcohol, claimed the life of 20-year-old Jacob Hohman, of Bascom, who had been a passenger. Kevin T. Wertz, 22, of Bascom, the driver, was found guilty in December of vehicular homicide and sentenced to six months in jail. Ratchen, who also was a passenger in the vehicle, is one of four charged with underage possession/consumption. Shiloh Sauber, 22, of Tiffin, and Dylan Shellhouse, 20, of Tiffin, were convicted of the underage possession/consumption charge and were sentenced by Tiffin-Fostoria Municipal Court Judge Mark Repp to 30 days in jail. Rachel M. Pennington, 21, of McCutchenville, who also is facing the charge, is set to go to trial in December. In July, Ratchen’s attorney had requested Repp be disqualified from the case because of personal bias or prejudice. It claimed Repp wanted to sentence Ratchen to 30 days in jail and would not consider a lesser sentence. The disqualification was granted by Seneca County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Kelbley. Following the disqualification, Tim Hoover, Fostoria prosecutor, recused himself from the case. Pennington’s attorney also had filed an affidavit of disqualification, but it was denied by Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor.