How Ohio handles a case

What happens after an arrest anywhere in Ohio: who decides release first, how fast a person sees a judge, which courts hear the case, and who runs the offices around them. Every county in the state works under these rules.

From arrest to court

Who decides release first: Every court must keep a bail schedule for misdemeanors so people can be released before they see a judge. When no judge, magistrate, or clerk is available, the sheriff, police, or jailer may set bail from that schedule. Only a judge or magistrate sets bail on a felony.
Ohio Rev. Code 2937.23 Ohio Rev. Code 2937.011(I)
Time to see a judge: A person arrested and still held must see a judicial officer for a bail hearing by the second court day after arrest. After a warrantless arrest, a judge or magistrate must also review probable cause within 48 hours, but that review can happen on paper. If the person had no lawyer at the first hearing and is still held, a second bail hearing with appointed counsel follows two court days later.
Ohio Rev. Code 2937.011(J)Ohio Crim. R. 4(E)(2)
Money bail: Ohio courts may set money bail. The constitution tells courts to weigh public safety, the charge, and the person's record when setting the amount. State law requires the least restrictive conditions and any money terms to be the least costly that will bring the person back to court.
Ohio Const. art. I, sec. 9 Ohio Rev. Code 2937.011(A)-(B)
Pretrial risk assessment: No pretrial risk tool is required for bail decisions. In a 2020 state survey, under half of courts used one, and most of those used the Ohio Risk Assessment System Pretrial Assessment Tool. A few used the Public Safety Assessment.
Ohio Criminal Sentencing Commission, A Survey of Pretrial Practices in Ohio (2020)Ohio Rev. Code 5120.114
Courts: Each county's court of common pleas tries felonies. Municipal and county courts hear misdemeanors and hold first appearances in felony cases. Mayor's courts in some cities and villages without a municipal court hear ordinance and traffic cases.
Ohio Rev. Code 2301.01 Ohio Rev. Code 1905.01 Ohio Rev. Code 1907.13
Judges and magistrates: Voters elect common pleas judges to six-year terms on a ballot that shows no party, and judges must have six years of law practice. Municipal and county court judges are elected the same way and must also be lawyers. A mayor, who need not be a lawyer, hears mayor's court cases or appoints a lawyer as magistrate.
Ohio Rev. Code 2301.01 Ohio Rev. Code 3505.04 Ohio Rev. Code 1901.06 Ohio Rev. Code 1901.07 Ohio Rev. Code 1905.05
Prosecutors: Each county elects a prosecuting attorney to a four-year term, who prosecutes felonies. City law directors and prosecutors handle many misdemeanors in municipal and mayor's courts.
Ohio Rev. Code 309.01
Public defense: Each county's commissioners choose how to provide lawyers for people who can't afford one. Counties use a county public defender office, a nonprofit, court-appointed private lawyers, or the Ohio Public Defender. The state reimburses part of the cost.
Ohio Public Defender, County Resources Ohio Rev. Code 120.13
Jails: The county sheriff runs the county jail in most counties. Some counties share a multicounty jail run by a corrections commission, and some cities run their own jails.
Ohio Rev. Code 341.01 Ohio Rev. Code 307.93

Read from the statutes and court rules cited, 2026-09-30. Crim.R. 46 was repealed July 1, 2023; bail rules now sit in R.C. 2937.011. Common pleas candidates may run in party primaries even though the general ballot is nonpartisan; not confirmed from statute text here. Magistrate lawyer requirement under Crim.R. 19 not read. That city prosecutors handle misdemeanors is general practice, not read from statute.