Overview
- Former Hamilton County sheriff Simon Leis, a U.S. Marine veteran who served as prosecutor, judge and sheriff over more than five decades, died last month at age 92 after a four-year battle with stage-four cancer.
- A roughly 11.5-mile funeral procession on Friday carried Leis from B.J. Meyer Sons Funeral Home to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains, passing city landmarks where he worked and exercised his public duties.
- The memorial service at the cathedral included visitation, a funeral Mass led by Father Barry Windholtz, U.S. Marine honors with a color guard, a 21-gun salute and the playing of Taps.
- Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine ordered U.S. and Ohio flags flown at half-staff in Hamilton County and at specified state buildings for the day of the memorial, formalizing state recognition of Leis’s service.
- Leis’s family asked for donations to Madi’s House and is advancing plans for a Ty Leis Wellness and Fitness Center linked to that nonprofit, with the family reporting substantial funds already raised and seeking additional support.