State opposes podcaster's motion

SANDUSKY — Prosecutors filed a motion Wednesday opposing a defense attorney's request to overturn a local podcaster's conviction. Ashli Ford, 40, of Milan, along with her newly retained counsel, Peter Pattakos, filed a motion on Monday seeking to have her acquitted on the four counts of intimidation — each a third-degree felony — that she was found guilty of on May 22. Ford, who waived her right to a jury trial and opted for a bench trial, which lasted four days, was found guilty of four charges and not guilty of 15 other counts — including extortion, telecommunications fraud, and falsification — in her 19-count indictment by visiting Lorain County Judge Debra Boros. The four intimidation charges stem from a Facebook post directed at Norwalk city government officials — Mayor Dave Light, law director Stu O'Hara, former Norwalk police Chief David Smith and former Norwalk safety services director Mike White. The post claimed she would bring the men to their demise, "more akin to Malcolm X than Martin Luther King Jr." Defense attorneys maintain Ford's remarks are protected First Amendment speech. In his response, Erie County prosecutor Kevin Baxter referenced that Boros, in July 2024, made a ruling that dismissed a motion to throw out the case on the same grounds. Attorney represented the Deans Also in the response, Baxter pointed out ties between Ford's new attorney and the family of Amanda Dean. Pattakos previously represented the family of Dean, a 36-year-old Collins mother who went missing on July 11, 2017. While representing members of the Dean family, on May 12, 2023, Pattakos sent a cease-and-desist letter to Ford. The letter was introduced as a piece of evidence by prosecutors during Ford's trial. Baxter said that Pattakos described Ford's statements about the Dean family as "defamatory" and "harassment." "One may readily infer that you have prioritized your interest in attracting attention to yourself (listeners to your podcast, pageviews to your web pages, etc.) over the performance of any fair, truthful, and effective advocacy on Amanda's behalf," Pattakos' 2023 letter to Ford states. It wasn't clear if Baxter was claiming that these facts present a conflict of interest for Pattakos. It also wasn't clear when Boros would make her ruling. Ford is set to be sentenced on July 16.