Port Clinton attorney arrested for violating protection order in Toledo
Aug. 19—A Port Clinton lawyer was held Thursday in the Lucas County jail in lieu of $900,000 bond for three misdemeanor offenses claiming she violated a protection order by going to her ex-girlfriend's home and stealing security cameras.
Amanda Andrews, 41, a practicing family-law attorney, is also charged in Toledo Municipal Court with misuse of the 911 system, asking police to check on the ex-girlfriend's safety under the false claim the woman might harm herself, court records show.
Ms. Andrews was arrested by Toledo police shortly after 4 a.m. Wednesday. She represented herself later that day before Toledo Municipal Court Judge Michelle Wagner, who set bond at $300,000 for each count and ordered Ms. Andrews to have no contact with the victim.
The Blade left a message on Ms. Andrews' phone on Thursday.
The victim reported seeing Ms. Andrews at Hollywood Casino Toledo around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday and denied making any contact with Ms. Andrews, according to a Toledo police report. The victim left the casino about an hour later, returning to her residence in the 3700 block of Lockwood Avenue.
Around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, Ms. Andrews went to the ex-girlfriend's home, where surveillance cameras showed her on the property and removing cameras from the garage and the front porch. Ms. Andrews then called 911 about 3:50 a.m. from about a block away and asked for a police check on the ex-girlfriend's safety, police said.
When officers arrived, Ms. Andrews was found "on the ground appearing to be hiding behind a vehicle parked" in a nearby residence, the report states. During her arrest, which occurred without incident, Ms. Andrews told officers she and the victim had been at the casino together and the ex-girlfriend took a large amount of money from her, according to the report.
Police said they also had responded to a call the day before regarding Ms. Andrews having contacted the victim via cell phone and sent her a threatening text message.
It's not the first time Ms. Andrews has been identified as a defendant, instead of an attorney, on a case.
She was indicted by an Ottawa County grand jury for passing a bad check, a felony offense, on Nov. 15, 2019. Special prosecutors asked to dismiss the case in April after they became "aware of several apparent significant violations" by Ms. Andrews.
"The state seeks to have the indictment dismissed without prejudice so that, upon conclusion of this investigation, any new charges can be included with the charges of the current indictment," Christian Stickan, a special prosecuting attorney, wrote in court documents.
On July 6, visiting Judge Stephen Yarbrough sentenced Ms. Andrews to 60 days in the Ottawa County jail for alleged failure to pay child support and abide by orders in divorce proceedings, court records show. The Sixth District Court of Appeals stayed the term of incarceration pending an appeal.
She previously spent nine days in jail, as ordered by Judge Yarbrough, records show.
A further hearing is scheduled for Sept. 1.
Other court records show liens and a foreclosure on her residence in Ottawa County.
In Franklin Municipal Court, Ms. Andrews pleaded guilty to three separate misdemeanor offenses of violating a protection order in 2018. She served one day in jail and was placed on 730 days of probation, which ended Oct. 17, 2020, according to court records.
Ms. Andrews has her own law office in Port Clinton and handles family law, personal injury, and auto negligence cases.
Ms. Andrews attended law school at the University of Detroit Mercy and was admitted to the bar in May, 2012. According to Ohio records, Ms. Andrews has no discipline history or administrative sanctions or suspensions.
Any grievances potentially filed against her are not public record unless the Office of Disciplinary Counsel investigates and determines there is credible evidence of misconduct.
First Published August 19, 2021, 1:59pm
