Prosecuting Attorney Ron Welch

Ron Welch was sworn in as Muskingum County Prosecutor on January 4th, 2021. Ron grew up in Stovertown which sits in between Roseville and Philo. He attended grade school and junior high school in Roseville before graduating Philo High School in 1990. Ron then attended The Ohio State University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science before moving on to law school at the University of Toledo. After graduating law school Ron immediately began work as an assistant prosecutor in Toledo, Ohio working for the Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office. Ron then had the opportunity to work for the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office in Columbus, Ohio where he began prosecuting crimes against women and children in what many refer to as the special victims unit or SVU. Ron prosecuted cases in SVU for over 5 years eventually leading to him being promoted to the head of that unit. In 2005 Ron chose to leave Franklin County after being offered a position in the Muskingum County Prosecutor’s Office. Ron and his wife, Erin McClelland Welch, had hoped for a chance to return to Muskingum County. They both grew up in Muskingum County and wanted to the chance to serve the community by making it a better, safer place to live, raise a family and run a business. In 2020 Mike Haddox announced he would be retiring and provided his unconditional support of Ron for the position of County Prosecutor. After 15 years as an assistant prosecutor in Muskingum County and 22 years overall as an assistant prosecuting attorney, Ron was elected by Muskingum County citizens in November 2020 earning the most votes of any county wide office holder. Ron’s entire legal career has been dedicated to serving the citizens of Ohio as a prosecuting attorney and his goal is to continue doing so until the end of his career.

During his 20+ year career as a prosecutor Ron has prosecuted all types of cases including death penalty, murder, rape, human trafficking, drug trafficking, home invasions, internet crimes involving child pornography, child physical and sexual abuse, economic fraud, welfare fraud and elder abuse. Ron has prosecuted cases that have been featured on Dateline, Bill O’Reilly, Fox and numerous other media outlets.

In addition to his daily duties as a prosecutor Ron provides training to law enforcement, sexual assault nurses, social workers and civic groups. Additionally, Ron has trained prosecutors on a statewide and national level. He is a member of the Muskingum County Bar Association, Ohio State Bar Association, Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association and National District Attorneys Association, NRA, Fraternal Order of Police, Zane Lodge #5 and the Muskingum County Republican Club.

Ron has been actively involved in the community as a volunteer, youth sports coach and conducted age-appropriate presentations for school aged children on topics related to bullying, sexting, date rape, drugs and decision-making.

Since being elected Ron has been working with various groups to address the ever changing landscape of criminal justice. He has been instrumental in the develop of the local child advocacy center, Heroes Landing, that provides necessary medical, emotional and psychological services for children that have been victims of sexual assault. Ron is also working with drug and mental providers to develop new policies for addressing both adults and juveniles who have drug and mental health issues that are contributing factors to criminal behavior. In addition to these advanced approaches to prosecution, the Muskingum County Prosecutor’s Office continues to aggressively prosecute cases of all types that are detrimental to the safety of our community.

Ron is the dad to three fantastic children and married to Erin McClelland Welch and all are proud to call Zanesville and Muskingum County home.