Tiffin City Schools superintendent charged with OVI
He was previously charged with OVI in 2017. 
By Allison Dunn / The Blade
Thu, 05 Dec 2019 12:35:56 GMT
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TIFFIN — The Tiffin City Schools superintendent was recently charged with driving under the influence after a state trooper pulled him over for a lane violation in Marion County.
Gary Barber, 55, is charged in Marion Municipal Court with a misdemeanor offense of operating a vehicle under the influence and refusal of an OVI test, and a lane violation while driving at approximately 10:45 p.m. on Thanksgiving, according to Marion Municipal Court records.
Mr. Barber was issued a summons to appear in court and he entered a not guilty plea earlier this week, according to his defense attorney, Todd Anderson.
Mr. Anderson said he was only recently retained by Mr. Barber and he has basic information regarding the case, as his requests for police reports and dashboard camera video are still pending.
“I really am not in a position to comment, I only have limited information,” Mr. Anderson said, adding he will meet with his client to discuss the case in greater detail at a later date.
The Blade tried contacting Mr. Barber by telephone on Thursday, but a secretary said he was not in the office. When asked if he would return Friday, the secretary replied that Mr. Barber was on medical leave.
Assistant Superintendent Robert Boes is overseeing the day-to-day operations of the district.
“The Board is looking into all of the current circumstances and will be developing a plan for the effective and efficient management of the operations of the district,” Mr. Boes told The Blade through an emailed statement.
These are not the first allegations of Mr. Barber driving under the influence.
In September, 2017, he entered a no contest plea in Tiffin Municipal Court from a May OVI incident, and he was ordered to pay a $375 first-time OVI offense fine and his license was suspended for six months. He was also placed on non-reporting probation for one year.
Mr. Barber, formerly of Marion, was hired by Tiffin City Schools in March, 2017 with a three year contract that took effect that August, making $175,000 a year under the agreement.
Following that incident, he apologized in an email.