CINCINNATI — After he was sworn in to Cincinnati City Council on Monday, Steve Goodin said he looks forward to rooting out corruption at City Hall.
Judge Ralph Winkler appointed Goodin, a Republican, to take the seat of suspended Councilman Jeff Pastor amid accusations that Pastor took money in exchange for votes on council.
In a brief statement after he was sworn in, Goodin said he is not looking to advance any partisan agenda.
“I’m very mindful that my appointment did not come through an electoral process. The matters that I believe face this council are not matters of right or left, they’re matters of right and wrong.”
Goodin said his office would release a series of proposals to address corruption in the coming weeks.
Goodin's appointment comes weeks after federal agents arrested Pastor on federal bribery charges; Pastor is accused of taking $55,000 in exchange for votes on two developments.
Last week, a federal judge approved a temporary suspension for Pastor, pending the results of his trial on federal corruption charges. Pastor will continue to collect paychecks from his $65,000 annual salary while under suspension. Winkler appointed Goodin because it is his duty to do so under state law, since Pastor was suspended and did not resign.
Pastor's arrest came nine months after federal agents charged former Cincinnati City Councilwoman Tamaya Dennard in the first of three corruption scandals to rock City Hall this year. Dennard pleaded guilty to honest services wire fraud in June, and U.S. District Court Judge Susan Dlott sentenced her to 18 months in prison on Tuesday.
The most recent arrest at City Hall came on Nov. 19, when a federal grand jury indicted Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld on charges of honest services wire fraud, bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds and attempted extortion under color of official right.
Sittenfeld pleaded not guilty and has maintained his innocence.
Goodin is a commercial litigation lawyer at Graydon Law Firm and serves as chair of the board of trustees for the Center for Addiction Treatment, according to his bio. Goodin graduated from the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1999.
