- Judge Goulding was invited to serve on the Judicial Ethics and Professional Committee of the Ohio Judicial Conference. This important committee of judges across the State of Ohio is charged with both reviewing current laws which govern the conduct of judges and suggesting ways in which such laws might better establish high standards of ethical judicial conduct. Recent topics under consideration include judges' participation in committees seeking to promote public confidence in the legal system and more open and comprehensive disclosure relative to judicial political campaign contributions.

- Court security and funding remains in flux as the judges of Toledo Municipal Court and the City Administration continue working toward a solution. The judges refuse to agree to cuts and systemic changes which would surely compromise the safety of the thousands of citizens who visit the court, and have ordered certain measures to be taken to preserve the rights of participants in our legal system to a courthouse as free as possible from violence and threat. Public safety should be of paramount priority.

- According to reports filed monthly with the Ohio Supreme Court, Judge Goulding has been by far the busiest trial judge among the judges of Toledo Municipal Court. For the period February, 2007 through April, 2008, Judge Goulding reports the highest number of cases terminated by either jury trial or trial to the bench. He has not been afraid to reject plea agreements in criminal cases, and has consistently reported among the lowest numbers of pending cases, demonstrating efficiency and a solid work ethic.

Judge Goulding has successfully caused Toledo Municipal Court to update its bail/bond schedule. This schedule dictates the amount of bail to be set for a defendant arrested for misdemeanor offenses. The schedule itself, which has been in existence for decades, had not been reviewed or updated since the mid-1980s.

Under the old schedule, a defendant could post bond at 10% of a stated amount. The stated amount imposed bond at amounts corresponding to the seriousness of the crime. It also considered the residence of the defendant - for instance, local residents were charged a lower amount than an out-of-state resident. The schedule was last amended in 1983.

Judge Goulding sought and received the counsel and approval of all of the judges on the court to revise this schedule. Amounts to be posted for bond have now been adjusted to account for inflation. More importantly, crimes involving violence to a human alleged victim are excepted from the schedule so that now a judge has to directly set such bonds.

In a recent case before Judge Goulding, a defendant had been freed on $50 bond in a case alleging that a number of children had been left alone and unattended in the vicinity of a loaded shotgun and numerous pit bulls. The defendant, charged with Child Endangering, was able to post bond according to the old schedule, which did not take into account the gravity of the offense and the safety of not only the children involved, but also the community at large.

"In many cases, the old bail schedule was a virtual 'get out of jail free' card. That card has now been revoked," said Judge Goulding. "It is important, especially in victim-driven cases, for a judge to review the matter before bond is arbitrarily set. Such a review protects the victim and the community, and affords the defendant added protection of his constitutional rights," remarked the judge.