OACDL Lawyer of the Year Award

The OACDL Lawyer of the year award is an award given by you to one of you. It is an annual award that is given by you to a member in good standing who best lives up to the ideals and values of this association. Its recipient receives an award that means more than any other because it comes from his colleagues who appreciate the quality of his work and contributions to our profession.

Lifesaver Award

Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
Donald C. Schumacher Lifesaver Award for Excellence in Death Penalty Litigation

Don Schumacher, a long time criminal defense lawyer in Columbus, lost a long battle with cancer in September of 2007. At the time of his death Schumacher was President of the Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

Among his many achievements as a criminal defense lawyer, Don was most proud of his achievements and record in capital trials. Only one of his clients was sentenced to death out of approximately thirty trial level capital cases. Don shared his knowledge and experience with other attorneys, organizing death penalty seminars for OACDL and speaking regularly on death penalty and criminal law topic throughout the state. Don as was also a tireless promoter of OACDL - constantly encouraging attorneys and others to become members of OACDL.

To honor Don's long service to the OACDL and to recognize his significant contributions to the defense of indigent defendants facing the death penalty and his services in teaching the criminal defense community about the latest ideas and techniques, the OACDL has created the DONALD C. SCHUMACHER LIFESAVER AWARD for Excellence in Death Penalty Litigation. This yearly award is designed to recognize outstanding achievements in avoiding imposition of the death penalty through trial excellence, mitigation investigation and presentation, as well as appellate and post-conviction litigation, and education. The Schu Award will recognize significant achievement in a given year as well as lifetime achievement.