Outgoing Lorain County Attorney J.D. Tomlinson breaks his silence for the first time since the election

LORAIN COUNTY, Ohio (WOIO) – Outgoing Lorain County Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson is speaking out for the first time since losing his re-election bid.

This comes a week after the judge dismissed Felony charge filed by the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office on Oct. 1, 2024, against Tomlinson and Chief of Staff Jim Burge.

Now Tomlinson wants to prove his innocence publicly.

“I want the truth to come out,” Tomlinson said.

Tomlinson’s problems centered around his former employee and ex-girlfriend, Jennifer Battistelli.

He says the two developed a romantic relationship while working for Tomlinson.

Last year, Battistelli filed an EEOC complaint accusing her boss of sexual harassment.

When asked if he harassed her, Tomlinson denied this.

“No, I didn’t. Never,” Tomlinson said. “It was a consensual relationship.”

Battistelli’s complaint also alleged that Tomlinson tried to persuade him to retract his statement.

The Lorain County Sheriff’s Office later charged Tomlinson was charged with three crimes, including tampering with evidence, intimidation and attempted bribery.

Chief of Staff Jim Burge was charged with tampering with evidence and intimidation.

Although all the accusations dismissed Shortly after the election, Tomlinson says he never had his day in court.

“Listen, it was rejected and I’m still sitting in front of you,” Tomlinson told 19 Investigator Mike Mason. “I’m not happy with the way this ended.”

Tomlinson obtained 19 Investigates text messages that appeared to have been sent in October between Battistelli and Lorain County Sheriff’s lead investigator Robert Vansant. Tomlinson says he obtained the messages through reconnaissance after the election.

Tomlinson says these texts prove he never tried to bribe Battistelli and that Vansant took events out of context to implicate him.

According to Tomlinson, Battistelli’s messages to Vansant indicate that she never intended to file charges against him.

“I think they’re using him as a tool in this whole thing,” Tomlinson said. “I don’t think he made these allegations himself.”

Late last year, records show Tomlinson and Battistelli agreed to settle the EEOC complaint for $100,000. The money was allocated from the prosecutor’s taxpayer-funded budget.

The Lorain County Sheriff’s Office then filed a criminal complaint.

“I think they took things out of context and used that to create these accusations,” Tomlinson said. “But I don’t believe he actually stated that we were intimidating or bribing him.”

Tomlinson claims to have evidence of his innocence.

“I’m quite pleased with our evidence,” Tomlinson said.

This evidence was only obtained through discovery after the election.

Tomlinson thinks this is a well-conceived political maneuver designed by his opponents to ensure he loses the election. vote.

He now says he wants to expose how his political rivals used their positions to discredit him.

“My opponents were so blatant in unseating me,” Tomlinson said. “How recklessly they used the justice system.”

The charges against Tomlinson and Chief of Staff Jim Burge were dismissed after Battistelli failed to appear in court.

We reached out to Battistelli, but he told us he had no comment.

We also reached out to the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office and investigator Robert Vansant, but they also did not respond.

19 Investigates will continue to follow this story and bring you new developments.

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