Judge David Hamilton (Hilligan Class, 2012) had dreams of becoming a big-time defense attorney when he started classes at Cooley Law School in the fall of 2009. But his mom, Rosalind, envisioned her son in a different career path – a life in public service. After his first year at Cooley, Hamilton proved her right.
Following graduation from Cooley, Hamilton landed a job as a field organizer in Ohio with Organizing for America for President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign in 2012. From there, he became an Akron City prosecutor.
In 2016, Hamilton was elected to the Summit County Council and served through 2019. The following year, he was hired as a judicial attorney for Akron Municipal Judge Ron Cable. He served in that role for a little under two years before being elected to Akron Municipal Court judge in 2019 where he continues to serve. In 2023 and 2025, Hamilton was selected by his peers to serve as the court’s administrative and presiding judge, which oversees the municipal court operations, including grants, budgeting and personnel, and its five other judges in addition to presiding over his own caseload.
“When we had the conversation, I said, ‘Oh Mom, you don't know what you're talking about. There's nothing I've shown you to let you know that I want to be in public service or that I’d be any good at it,” recalled Hamilton. “But she was right! It's like the old adage goes – parents know their kids.”
During his first term at Cooley, Hamilton fought a steeper uphill battle than going to classes and studying for exams.
His mother had lost her battle with breast cancer shortly after Hamilton started law school.
“When my mom died, it was like everything became real for me,” Hamilton said. “Every conversation we've had, I thought back about the things discussed and who she wanted me to be.”
That entire first year of law school was a blur for Hamilton. He made numerous trips back and forth between Lansing, Michigan, and Akron to be with his family and plan his mother’s funeral.
Looking back, Hamilton is unsure how he got through that first year at Cooley.
“The one thing about life is it doesn't care what else you're doing. It doesn't care that you have goals. It doesn't care that you're in school,” said Hamilton. “Life is going to just sometimes get in the way. And that's the reality of it. But you just have to stay faithful, determined and disciplined.”
The following year, Hamilton attended a rally in downtown Lansing, not far from Cooley’s campus, where people from all walks of life were fired up about a state bill that would increase the cost of car insurance.
At that moment, that is when Hamilton realized he wanted to be a public servant.
“My mom was right,” he said. “What’s interesting about law and politics is government touches everything we do in society. And that was a testament to what I saw that day because in government, it doesn't matter what race, creed, color, or economic status that you're in, we can all get behind one cause for the common good. I look at public service as a way to bring people together.”
A native of Akron, Hamilton received his undergraduate degree in sociology with a minor in criminal justice and criminology from the University of Akron. While at Cooley, he began his journey in public service work when he ran and was elected Ingham County precinct delegate in 2010. Hamilton then ran for Student Bar Association president – and lost.
“That’s the only loss I've ever had as a candidate,” joked Hamilton. “I still think about that – it still stings a little.”
The following year, Hamilton’s last term at Cooley, he ran for SBA senator – and was successful that time around. That year was pivotal for Hamilton. He found the camaraderie that he missed out on during his first two years at law school, and experienced firsthand how student government worked.
“What’s cool about Cooley is it has a diverse student population,” said Hamilton. “There are a lot of students from different states, nationalities, and backgrounds – you really have this melting pot of people who you can work with and learn from. I think that experience helped me with being an elected official now.”
In 2020, during his first year as a municipal judge in Akron, Hamilton created a first-of-its-kind program in Ohio, called COMPASS (Compassion, Opportunity, Mentoring, Purpose, Achievement, Success and Stepping Forward). The program, which received statewide attention during a Leadership Ohio event in May, collaborates with community partners as mentors to show young men how to deal with deep-rooted trauma and prepare for life after probation, including job placement, GED, trade licensure and financial literacy. Upon graduation from COMPASS most graduates get their case/cases dismissed, fines and court costs waived and their records sealed.
“Typically, a lot of guys, get on probation, and do just enough to complete probation, then they go back out in the community and re-offend,” said Hamilton. “COMPASS is designed to stop this revolving door of men going in and out of the criminal justice system, and in turn, decreasing the recidivism rate in Ohio. Then, once they graduate from COMPASS, they have a fresh start and possess the tools and resources necessary to stay on the right path.”
Two years later, Hamilton created Raising the Bar, a career in law exploration program for minority high school and college students in the Akron area.
Both programs have an indirect tie to Hamilton’s superhero, his brother, who Hamilton witnessed get arrested and go to prison. Hamilton, a young boy at the time, vividly remembers being excited that his brother, who was in his late teens, was the one picking him up for baseball practice that day. Within a few minutes after getting in the car, the brothers were pulled over by the police and Hamilton’s brother was taken into custody.
That was the life-altering moment where Hamilton determined he was going to pursue a career in law.
“He was just a young kid – but that's the harsh reality in the environment where we grew up – crime, violence and poverty is all around you,” said Hamilton, noting his brother turned his life around after being released from prison. “I think in a lot of ways it makes me a great judge because most of the people I see come from the same environment and I can relate to them – we share the same background, probably some of the same stories and they look like me. I like to think that it actually has helped me become a better judge and even be more compassionate to people – and not just look at what they’ve done, but also look at their circumstances and the reasons behind why they did what they did, and how I can help them. If I can make somebody a better person, then I've done my job.”