[Cite as State ex rel. Washington v. Krichbaum, 2018-Ohio-626.]

STATE OF OHIO, MAHONING COUNTY 

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS 

SEVENTH DISTRICT 

STATE OF OHIO, EX REL. 

WAYMAN E. WASHINGTON 

 RELATOR 

VS. 

JUDGE R. SCOTT KRICHBAUM, 

COMMON PLEAS COURT JUDGE 

 RESPONDENT 

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CASE NO. 17 MA 0176 

OPINION 

AND 

JUDGMENT ENTRY 

CHARACTER OF PROCEEDINGS: Petition for Writ of Mandamus 

JUDGMENT: Denied. 

APPEARANCES: 

For Relator Wayman E. Washington, Pro-se 

Inmate No. 632-492 

Richland Correctional Institution 

P.O. Box 8107 

Mansfield, Ohio 44901-8107 

For Respondent Attorney Paul Gains 

Mahoning County Prosecutor 

Attorney Ralph Rivera 

Assistant Prosecutor 

21 West Boardman Street, 6th Floor 

Youngstown, Ohio 44503-1426

JUDGES: 

Hon. Cheryl L. Waite 

Hon. Gene Donofrio 

Hon. Carol Ann Robb 

 

 

 Dated: February 12, 2018 
[Cite as State ex rel. Washington v. Krichbaum, 2018-Ohio-626.]

PER CURIAM. 

{¶1} Relator Wayman E. Washington, proceeding on his own behalf, has 

filed a petition for a writ of mandamus seeking to have this Court direct Respondent 

Mahoning County Common Pleas Court Judge R. Scott Krichbaum to vacate a 

decree of foreclosure for lack of personal jurisdiction. Respondent, represented by 

the Mahoning County Prosecutor’s Office, has filed a combined answer and motion to 

dismiss. 

{¶2} Deutsche Bank National Trust Company filed a foreclosure action 

against Relator in 2007. The bank obtained a decree of foreclosure and eventually, 

following bankruptcy proceedings, the property was sold at sheriff’s sale and the 

proceeds distributed accordingly. Relator did not appeal the entries relating to the 

foreclosure and sale. 

{¶3} Approximately nine years later, Relator filed a motion to vacate the 

decree of foreclosure. A magistrate issued an order denying the motion. Relator did 

not file objections to the magistrate’s decision. 

{¶4} Relator then filed the petition which is the subject of this original action. 

{¶5} A writ of mandamus is an extraordinary remedy which should be 

exercised with caution and issued only when the right is clear. State ex rel. Brown v. 

Ashtabula Cty. Bd. of Elections, 142 Ohio St.3d 370, 2014-Ohio-4022, 31 N.E.3d 

596, ¶ 11. Entitlement to a writ of mandamus requires the relator to demonstrate: (1) 

they have a clear legal right to the relief, (2) the respondent has a clear legal duty to 

provide that relief, and (3) they have no adequate remedy at law. State ex rel. 

Taxpayers for Westerville Schools v. Franklin Cty. Bd. of Elections, 133 Ohio St.3d 

153, 2012-Ohio-4267, 976 N.E.2d 890, ¶ 12. 

{¶6} Relator has failed to demonstrate the third element necessary for 

issuance of the extraordinary writ of mandamus: absence of an adequate remedy at 

law. “A cause of action in mandamus, filed originally * * * in the court of appeals, will 

not lie where it is determined that the relator has a plain and adequate remedy in the 

ordinary course of the law by way of appeal.” State ex rel. Middletown Bd. of Edn. v. 

Butler Cty. Budget Comm., 31 Ohio St.3d 251, 510 N.E.2d 383 (1987), syllabus. 
- 2 - 

Relator claims error with the decree of foreclosure in his case. He had available to 

him as a remedy a direct appeal but did not pursue an appeal of the orders relating to 

the foreclosure action. “The mere fact that pursuing an available remedy of appeal at 

the conclusion of the proceedings encompasses more delay and inconvenience than 

seeking a writ of mandamus is insufficient to prevent the process from constituting a 

plain and adequate remedy in the ordinary course of the law.” State ex rel. Logue v. 

Fregiato, 7th Dist. No. 01-BA-53, 2002-Ohio-1028, ¶ 19, citing State ex rel. Willis v. 

Sheboy, 6 Ohio St.3d 167, 451 N.E.2d 1200 (1983); State ex rel. Kirin v. Krichbaum, 

7th Dist. No. 16 MA 0011, 2016-Ohio-887. 

{¶7} Relator’s complaint for a writ of mandamus is dismissed. Costs taxed 

to Relator. Final order. Clerk to serve notice as provided by the Civil Rules. 

Waite, J., concurs. 

Donofrio, J., concurs. 

Robb, P. J., concurs.