The administration of President Donald Trump has fired a federal prosecutor who worked on the case that sent the former Ohio House speaker to prison as part of what is commonly called the “largest bribery scheme in Ohio history.”
Former President Joe Biden appointed Kenneth L. Parker, a lifelong Cincinnati-area resident, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Ohio. Parker, who had served as an assistant United States attorney since 1999, was sworn in as the district’s 45th United States attorney on Nov. 23, 2021.
A 1994 graduate of Tuskegee University, Parker earned his law degree from Indiana University in 1997. He clerked for District Court Judge S. Arthur Spiegel.
NBC News reported that Trump fired multiple U.S. attorneys, including California, Maryland, and North Carolina prosecutors. The move isn’t necessarily uncommon for a new administration—or even surprising, given Trump’s swift actions to overhaul the government.
In a post to Truth Social, Trump said he is removing all Biden-era federal attorneys.
“Over the past four years, the Department of Justice has been politicized like never before,” Trump said. “Therefore, I have instructed the termination of ALL remaining ‘Biden Era’ U.S. Attorneys. We must 'clean house' IMMEDIATELY, and restore confidence. America’s Golden Age must have a fair Justice System - THAT BEGINS TODAY!”
Trump will appoint a new attorney to fill the post. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Norris will serve in Parker’s stead in an acting capacity for the district, which includes the Columbus, Cincinnati, and Dayton metropolitan areas.
“It has been my highest honor to serve the people of the Southern District of Ohio as the United States Attorney,” Parker said in a statement, according to various media reports. “There is no better feeling than to come to the office every day knowing I, along with all the prosecutors, trial attorneys, and staff, work to protect the rights, safety, and interests of the public with excellence and integrity.”
During his tenure, Parker oversaw the trial and March 2023 conviction of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder, R-Glenford, on charges that he participated in a racketeering conspiracy to pass and uphold a billion-dollar nuclear plant bailout codified in House Bill 6, which lawmakers passed in 2019.
Prosecutors said Householder spent more than $500,000 of the money “to pay off his credit card balances, repair his Florida home and settle a business lawsuit.”
A federal judge subsequently sentenced Householder to 20 years in prison, and he is incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution, Elkton, in Lisbon. The former speaker is appealing.
“If Former SDOH US Attorney Kenneth Parker had a tiny bit of class, he would have resigned long ago,” Scott Pullins, a lawyer for Householder, said in a post to X. “Because that’s how it works. But he didn’t and was fired. Democrats never quit. And when they win elections, they fire every Republican in sight.”
Former U.S. Attorney David DeVillers, a Trump appointee, initially brought the charges in the case, including against the former speaker. He resigned from the post in February 2021.
HB 6 was purportedly a ratepayer-funded bailout of two nuclear power plants. The move emerged after Akron-based FirstEnergy Solutions filed for bankruptcy in March 2018 and announced plans to close Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor near Toledo and Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Perry.
Despite throwing Householder in prison, the fallout from the scandal continues. Last month, a federal grand jury indicted two former FirstEnergy executives — Charles E. Jones, 69, of Akron, and Michael Dowling, 60, of Massillon. Both were charged with participating in a racketeering conspiracy.
Energy reform continues to be a hot topic in the Buckeye State, following the passage of HB 6.
