EATON — Stephen Bruns, Magistrate for the Preble County Common Pleas Court, has announced his candidacy to serve as the Judge for that same court.
“With the heroin crisis ravaging our communities, criminals threatening our streets, and predatory lenders ruining households, we need a judge who will continue to fight for justice and for the people of Preble County.” Bruns said in announcing his candidacy.
“I hope to continue serving the hard-working citizens of Preble County as your next Common Pleas Court Judge.”
For nearly 10 years, Steve Bruns has served as Magistrate, presiding over domestic relations, civil, and criminal cases. Now that Judge David Abruzzo, who was first elected to the bench in 1982, is retiring, Bruns sees this as an opportunity to serve Preble County in a larger role.
Bruns, a lifelong Preble County resident, graduated from National Trail High School and the University of Cincinnati. Following a call to fight for the rights of his fellow citizens, Bruns obtained his law degree from the Ohio State University College of Law in 1983, and then returned to Preble County to begin his legal practice the same year.
For more than 30 years, Bruns has represented individuals and business clients in civil, criminal, and domestic relations cases. Bruns has appeared in federal court, the Ohio Supreme Court, and courts in many other Ohio counties. He has also prosecuted hundreds of criminal cases on behalf of the City of Eaton and most of the villages in Preble County.
Working with other local agencies, Bruns has initiated efforts to establish a certified drug court. The drug court will address the opioid crisis and other drug addictions devastating Preble County. Once established, the drug court will give non-violent offenders treatment for their addictions while being closely monitored by the Court, treatment professionals, and probation staff.
Actively involved in his community, Bruns serves on the boards of the Council on Aging and the Preble County Historical Society. He has previously served on the Eaton Community School Board, the Preble County Board of Elections, the 4-H Advisory Board, the Mental Health Board, and the Session of the First Presbyterian Church of Eaton. He volunteered at the Preble County Fair and Pork Festival for more than 20 years.
Bruns has also served five terms as President of the Preble County Bar Association and has also been Preble County’s representative to the Ohio State Bar Association’s Council of Delegates since 2001.
Bruns taught business law at Miami University Middletown and Indiana University East for 20 years and taught future police officers at the Adult Police Academy at the Miami Valley Career Technology Center.
Steve and his wife, Lisa (Lange) Bruns, a West Alexandria native and graduate of Twin Valley South, have two children, both graduates of Eaton High School. Andy practices law in San Francisco and Molly works at the Holocaust Museum in Washington. D.C.
