A new judge is joining the Van Wert Court of Common Pleas in the probate and juvenile division. Eva J. Yarger, of Van Wert, assumes office on Feb. 17.

She replaces Judge Kevin H. Taylor, who retired. Appointed to the position by Gov. Mike DeWine, Judge Yarger will serve the remainder of the unfinished term and must run for election this year to retain the seat.

Before taking the bench, Judge Yarger served as the Van Wert County prosecutor since 2017.

“After the honor of working as Van Wert County’s elected prosecutor, working for crime victims and to protect children, I look forward to continuing my services to Van Wert County and its children from the bench of Juvenile Court,” said Judge Yarger.

Judge Yarger is a 1989 graduate of the Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, formerly known as the Arizona State University College of Law. That same year, she began her law career as an associate attorney for Johnson & Burchfield before joining Hatcher, Diller, Rice & Beebe in 1993.

In 1997, she became a partner at Young, Taylor, Steele and Yarger, which later became Young & Yarger. At the same time, she also served as an assistant prosecuting attorney for Van Wert County from 1996 until 2017.

In 2017, Judge Yarger left Young & Yarger to serve full-time as an assistant prosecutor in Allen County for several months before stepping into her most recent prosecutor role in Van Wert County.