The Akron Legal News

From bailiff to bench, Judge Mark Humor has climbed up the ranks

JESSICA SHAMBAUGH
Special to the Legal News
Published: June 18, 2013

Having never worked as an attorney, Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Mark Hummer took an unusual path to his seat on the bench.

Hummer first got a taste for muni court while serving six years as a bailiff for former Judge Richard Ferrell.

Finding himself surrounded by “good people” and working what he called a “good job,” he simply decided not to leave.

“I was supposed to work for Judge Ferrell for a year, then I was supposed to go out on my own and be a lawyer somewhere but I didn’t do that,” Hummer said. “What it led to was opportunities within the court system. What I’ve done everyday is show up and try to do a good job and serve the people who come in here and serve the other people at the court, the other employees, in a way that people like.”

Hummer worked hard to serve all of his co-workers, but it was one co-worker in particular who caught his eye.

While working as a bailiff, Hummer hit it off with one of the public defenders and married her in 1991.

His wife, Jeanine, is now the city attorney for Upper Arlington and Hummer describes her as his “inspiration.”

He said her hard work ethic and ambition are often the driving force behind his work habits and were even the cause of his change in career path.

“Judge Ferrell and I were sitting around his office when the magistrate job came open in 1992 and we were just reading the newspaper or talking about the previous day’s baseball game and Jeanine said ‘Get on that phone, Judge Ferrell, and call the personnel judges so that you can try and get Mark that magistrate full-time job’ The two of us would have just sat in the office talking about baseball scores rather than doing anything and Jeanine was up on it,” he said, laughing. “She’s like that.”

Jeanine’s experience running judicial campaigns also came in handy when Hummer decided to run for an open seat on the bench in 2009.

He said he wasn’t sure he wanted to be a judge until he ran for the job, but his wife was once again instrumental in his career advancement.

Having settled in comfortably to his new position with the court, Hummer said he enjoys his job and intends to run for re-election when his term ends in 2015.

One of the best perks of his new role is the implied respect of the position.

He said having a stream of people constantly refer to him with such respect has been humbling and he feels “lucky” to get such treatment.

But while he may be called “Your Honor” on the bench, when Hummer returns to his chambers myriad hand-drawn pictures shower him with a different title: “Daddy.”

Hummer is the father of four and his youngest daughter has made her presence known in the judge’s office.

Her handwriting sends reminders of her love in the bold outlines and bright colors of crayon that are tacked up to cover nearly every inch of the wall behind her father’s desk.

On that desk, peeking over the scads of paperwork that comes along with a judicial seat, are pictures of his kids, each wearing the same coat when they are about the same age.

Each shot shows them posed with pumpkins in the background and seated next to their proud dad.

As the kids have grown, they’ve given Hummer the chance to stay involved in one of his true passions — sports.

“I just love sports, so anything sports related is great. I’ve done a lot of coaching of my kids over the years in baseball and basketball,” he said.

The judge himself played baseball and basketball in high school at Bishop Watterson High School and then decided to stay local by attending The Ohio State University to study journalism.

After earning his bachelor’s degree, Hummer took a job at the Columbus Citizen-Journal newspaper as a sports editor.

The paper folded after he completed his legal education at Capital University Law School and he said his love of sports helped to create a great chemistry in his work with Judge Ferrell.

Now, Hummer said he’s limited to playing golf, watching his kids and watching his beloved Ohio State Buckeyes.

“Watching the band come out before a football game, that is something for any Buckeye fan that gives you goosebumps,” he said. “So a football Saturday is an exciting thing in Columbus. The Ohio State campus is really just neat to be around because you have a feeling of life and vitality.”

When he’s not watching the Scarlet and Gray or sitting on the bench, Hummer said he likes to spend time with his brothers and sisters.

The youngest of eight, Hummer said his large family is part of why he’s never wanted to leave Columbus.

“I’m the baby of our family, all my brothers and sisters love me and I was just a lucky kid and so I feel happy here. I feel like I’ve been really blessed,” Hummer said.

He remembers his mother staying home to raise him and his siblings while his dad earned a living as a hearing officer for the Bureau of Employment Services.

The judge is quick to point out that just because his mother stayed at home does not mean she did not work.

“She worked really hard at making sure we were good kids,” he said.

Watching his parents work hard to raise a large family may have instilled a sense of perseverance in Hummer.

He said his job can get “gut wrenching” on days when he hears arraignment cases and realizes the “scary” things that happened the previous night.

“You, like everybody else, are a participant in the system and you have to hold up your end of the bargain,” he said.

Still, Hummer feels thankful to still be in the court he fell in love with as a bailiff.

“It’s a good job,” he said. “I have no complaints. I’m a very lucky guy.”

[Back]