Request filed to move assault case to federal court

By: 
Larry Limpf

A notice to move the assault case of Matt Damschroder, the former mayor of the Village of Elmore, from county court to federal court has been filed.
Attorneys for Damschroder filed the notice May 28. The village is also listed as a defendant in the case. John Kaylor, a local business owner, and his wife had filed a lawsuit in Ottawa County Common Pleas Court last month, alleging Kaylor suffered several injuries at the hands of Damschroder in April 2019.
“Plaintiffs (Kaylors) have asserted that defendants violated John R. Kaylor’s First and Fourteenth Amendment rights to the U.S. Constitution in violation of U.S Code,” the notice says. It was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio and asserts that the federal court has jurisdiction because a federal question is involved.
Kaylor, the owner of a plumbing business, is suing for $25,000 in compensatory damages, at least $25,000 in punitive damages and attorney fees.
According to court records, Kaylor, Damschroder and several others were at an “informal gathering” at Kaylor’s residence on Jackson Street. Kaylor alleges the former mayor struck him after Kaylor discussed scheduling a meeting regarding village regulations and their effect on his business.
Kaylor’s complaint states Damschroder struck him repeatedly without provocation, knocking him to the ground. The assault left Kaylor injured with black eyes, lacerations on the face, and injuries to his wrist, hand and ankle that required medical treatment.
Damschroder was charged with assault and entered a plea of guilty to a misdemeanor charge in September 2019 in Ottawa County Municipal Court.
“As a direct and proximate result of Defendant Village of Elmore’s negligence, malice, bad faith, wanton and/or reckless behavior in its training, monitoring, and/or supervising Defendant Damschroder, Plaintiffs suffered severe physical and psychological injuries,” the Kaylor complaint states.
They had requested a jury trial.
Ottawa County Common Pleas Court Judge Bruce Winters had recused himself from the assault case and requested the Ohio Supreme Court appoint a visiting judge to hear it.
Damschroder submitted his resignation as mayor in September 2019 as part of a settlement with the municipal court and he agreed to not seek election or appointment to any public office for 10 years. He also entered the court’s diversion program.

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