Justice Stratton Awarded Ellis Island Medal of Honor at Weekend Ceremony
Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton received a 2008 Ellis Island Medal of Honor at a ceremony Saturday, May 10, in New York City. (Read more.)

Justice Stratton Hosts Fellow Board Members of Corporation for Supportive Housing
A national organization devoted to ending homelessness, whose membership includes Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton, held its May meeting and gathered for a reception May 7 at the Ohio Judicial Center.
(Read more.)

Justice Stratton Speaks at Annual Meeting of Ohio Military Reserve Association
Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton served as guest speaker Saturday, April 12, at the annual state conference of the Ohio Military Reserve Association at the Ramada Plaza Hotel and Conference Center. (Read more.)

Justice Stratton Speaks at Substance Abuse Treatment Conference
Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton gave welcoming remarks Tuesday, April 1, at the two-day Statewide Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Conference. (Read more.)

Justice Stratton to Deliver Address at National Mental Health, Criminal Justice Conference
More than 1,200 attendees at the nation's largest mental health/criminal justice conference will hear from Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton March 19 in Washington, D.C. (Read more.)

Justice Stratton Addresses Mental Health Group, D.C. Visitors
Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton spoke Feb. 29 to a group of local, state and federal professionals devoted to transforming how mental health services are provided in Ohio. (Read more.)

Ohio Judicial Center Hosts Meeting of Interagency Homelessness Council
A statewide organization devoted to ending chronic homelessness and promoting affordable housing met Feb. 28 at the Ohio Judicial Center. (Read more.)

Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton - A National Leader in Mental Health and the Justice System
As a trial court judge for several years in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, Evelyn Lundberg Stratton was confronted by the lack of mental health services available to individuals appearing before the court. It was obvious that certain offenders became entangled in the criminal justice system because their illnesses were not being properly addressed in the community. (Read more.)

Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton, of the Supreme Court of Ohio, came to the bench by a very different route.

She was born to missionary parents in Bangkok, Thailand, and spent her childhood in Southeast Asia, attending boarding school in South Vietnam during the height of the Vietnam War, and later in Malaysia, coming to America periodically with her parents. At age 18, she returned to America alone with only a few hundred dollars in her pocket. She worked her way through school, receiving a Juris Doctor degree from The Ohio State University College of Law.

Justice Stratton's legal career began in the courtrooms of central Ohio as a trial lawyer. In 1989, as the first woman judge to be elected to the Franklin County Common Pleas Court, she presided over major cases ranging from capital murder trials to major civil actions. In her years on the bench, she established a solid record of judicial integrity, fairness, and diligence. Her approach to sentencing in serious felony cases earned her the nickname "The Velvet Hammer." Her work on the court led to her appointment, and subsequent election, to the Supreme Court of Ohio.

Justice Stratton is also committed to her community and her efforts have helped lead to major changes in adoption law. As chairperson of a national committee, Justice Stratton has led a nationwide effort to speed up adoption appeals. She has also provided strong leadership as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and Prevent Blindness Ohio.

With a partnership between courts and the mental health system, Justice Stratton believes many defendants whose mental illness is the basis of their criminal activity can be helped and their lives improved. She formed the Supreme Court of Ohio Advisory Committee on Mental Illness and the Courts, a task force that includes mental health, legal and criminal justice professionals from around the state. The advisory committee focuses on mental health initiatives in the court system and how to effectively implement such programs.

Justice Stratton also leads several national efforts toward helping persons with mental illness. She is the founder and immediate past co-chair of the Judges' Leadership Initiative, which supports mental health efforts, as well as the Returning Home Advisory Commission, which assists in the re-entry by persons from jails and prisons in order to reduce recidivism and its cost to society.

Justice Stratton is the wife of John A. Lundberg III, and the mother of two adult sons.

Justice Stratton enjoys painting, Thai cooking, and fly fishing with her husband. But surely her most interesting accomplishment was her first-place finish in a college Stampede Girls Goat Tying Competition - a talent she later put to good use as a trial lawyer.