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Alison Breaux beat odds to become Summit Co. Common Pleas judge
TRACEY BLAIR
Legal News Reporter
Published: June 9, 2017
Alison Breaux is proving the naysayers wrong.
When the 43-year-old West Akron resident unseated Republican Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Todd McKenney, many people in the legal community were shocked.
But after more than four months on the job, the Democrat is confident she is where she belongs.
“Judge McKenney had been on the ballot a lot and he had been in the public eye a lot,” Judge Breaux said. “I didn’t necessarily know what I was up against in the beginning. I think I was just like, `Oh I’m going to do this and do my best and we’ll see what happens.’
“When I started running last year, some people were like, `That’s great that you’re going to get your name out there. Good for you. Maybe next year you’ll win. ‘ So there was a lot of inner struggle, like can I actually win this race?
“I wasn’t running just to get my name out there. I was actually running because I wanted to win. And when it actually happened, it was like, `Oh gosh!’ I told people the whole year that I will be shocked if I win and I will be shocked if I lose. I had the belief system that I was going to win, but I also had been told by so many people that I had no chance.
“I was running against a big name. I was running against an incumbent. It was my first time running. I didn’t have a huge name out there. People didn’t know who I was. And first-time candidates don’t typically win and they certainly don’t unseat incumbents.”
But win she did, taking over the bench Jan. 5.
Judge Breaux previously worked in Akron Municipal Court as a magistrate in the small claims department.
“I really, really enjoyed it. It was a very good fit for me,” she said of that role. “I enjoyed being on the bench and being the one to listen to both sides of the story and rendering decisions and opinions.”
Akron Municipal Court Administrator Montrella Jackson called Judge Breaux an excellent addition to the judiciary.
“(She) has a strong work ethic, is very efficient and works extremely well with others,” Jackson said. “She is also a great listener.”
Jackson added that Judge Breaux’s strengths as a magistrate included the ability to conduct hearings in very tough situations while always maintaining her professionalism and helpfulness.
“She did a great job in streamlining the court hearings assigned to her,” said the municipal court administrator. “I also appreciated her positive attitude and disposition.”
Judge Breaux is also a former associate at Gorman, Malarcik, Pierce & Vuillemin and at Harry A. Tipping Co.
After graduating from Hudson High School in 1992, she left Kent State University with an English degree and no clear plan for the future.
She decided to become a lawyer at her father’s suggestion.
“I was always drawn to things that involved the law. All my favorite movies and all my favorite books always dealt with trials and cases and the law,” Judge Breaux said. “So when I finished college with my English degree, my dad said, `Why don’t you go to law school? You like to argue. And you like right and wrong and you’re very black and white.’ ”
So she took the LSAT and applied to The University of Akron School of Law.
“I got in, and before I knew it, I was going to law school,” she said. “It was hard. Undergrad wasn’t terribly hard but law school was hard for me. I had to study, I had to read, I had to prepare. There’s always the student who just doesn’t study, and doesn’t read, and they ace the test. But I had to work in law school, I really did.”
Judge Breaux got married to her husband, Todd, a urologist, before her third year of law school. The couple has three children, a 13-year-old daughter and two sons, ages 11 and 9.
Judge Breaux and her older brother were raised by an engineer father and a mother who worked for Planned Parenthood for more than three decades.
“I grew up all over. My dad worked for General Electric, so he was transferred a lot when we were growing up,” she said. “I’ve lived in California and Nebraska, I’ve lived in Texas, and I lived in Japan for a little while.
“It was hard because I was always the new kid. I don’t have any friends from when I was really young because we were always moving. And when you get older your friends become more important to you, and it was difficult. I didn’t love it, but now I look back and I think it probably shaped me.
“I was sort of shy growing up but I still was able to start up conversations because I had to. I couldn’t just be the wallflower in the corner. I had to sort of go out and make friends. In hindsight, it ended up being a good thing.”
Her ability to adapt to new situations and empathize with all types of people has served her well at work.
For instance, the judge estimates that 85 percent of her criminal docket is somehow tied into drugs.
“I think the majority of judges here are not inclined to send people to prison for minor drug offenses,” she said. “They really would like to see people get help.”
Judge Breaux admits being a judge is a constant struggle to be fair and do the right thing.
“You want to believe in people. But you also have to think about the facts and consider the law,” she said. “It would be great if we all had a crystal ball.”
Judge Breaux said one drug case continues to haunt her.
A man who was out on bond was waiting for his turn to come to the bench. He was sitting in the back of the courtroom, and she kept watching him.
“He didn’t look right. I was like, something’s not right,” she said.
During a sidebar, she told the defense attorney that the man looked dope sick or high and needed to be taken into custody to dry out.
Although the prosecutor agreed with the judge, the defendant convinced her she may have misjudged the situation.
“So I said, `OK, against my own judgment I want to put you in custody but I’m going to give you a chance,” she said. “I’m hearing what you’re saying. I’m going to keep you out on bond but I want you to know that I’m watching you and I’ve got my eye on you. Don’t mess up.
“Then I get a call the next day that he OD’d. He didn’t die. But he was in a treatment center. He was in detox. I was beside myself. I was like, how did I get talked out of that?
“I knew what I should have done and I did the wrong thing and I sort of beat myself up about it. Then after he was released from detox 40 days later, he came back and he looked totally different, 100 times better. And he brought with him these glowing reports from the hospital.
“I was like, you know what? Maybe that was the right thing. Maybe he did need to hit rock bottom. Maybe that’s just me reconciling what I did, but you just don’t know. You don’t know what is going to happen. I’m going to see him every month to keep my eye on him. Hopefully he’ll remember he almost killed himself and was given a second chance, I don’t know. You don’t know what people are going to do.”