At the end of February, Delaware County Prosecutor Carol O’Brien will leave her position at the prosecutor’s office and begin serving as the deputy attorney general for the State of Ohio.
O’Brien said Thursday the Delaware County Board of Commissioners will appoint a temporary replacement on Feb. 28, her last day as prosecutor. She added she has some say in who the temporary prosecutor will be, and once the announcement is made, that individual will do the job for 45 days before the Republican Central Committee appoints someone to serve as county prosecutor through the remainder of her term, which runs through 2020.
O’Brien said in her new job at deputy attorney general, she will supervise a number of departments, including the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy, and other units. She’s excited about what lies ahead.
“It’s such a challenge,” said O’Brien, who worked in the attorney general’s office from 1995 to 2007 before moving on and later replacing Dave Yost as Delaware County prosecutor in 2011.
O’Brien added she’s excited to be returning to the attorney general’s office in Columbus.
“The really cool thing about going back is I will be working with some of the sections where I worked when I was an assistant attorney general,” she said. “I’ll be going from supervising 32 people to supervising anywhere between 600 to 800 people. It’s going to be a true challenge, and I’m looking forward to it.”
O’Brien said what she’ll miss most about working in Delaware County is the local community.
“I’ll miss the people,” she said. “I have such a great staff and they work so hard, and they care so much about their job. I’ll miss the ability to go out and meet people and talk to people.”
She added that she’ll miss the courtroom, but she will never forget the relationships with victims that she’s formed as prosecutor.
“Working with strong, strong people, that’s the part I’ll never forget,” said O’Brien, who added she keeps in touch with many victims in cases she’s prosecuted, and she’ll always have those “special friendships.”
