State ex rel. Bloomingdale v. City of Fairborn

Section 10, Article XV of the Ohio Constitution establishes the principle of civil service hiring on merit and fitness.1 The city of Fairborn, a charter city, expressly adopts the merit and fitness principle in its charter, as the sole standard for hiring and promotion.2 Relator-appellant challenges the validity of the city’s hiring practices, claiming they violate the merit and fitness principle. He cites the city’s failure to appoint him to a posi*144tion as police officer, due to the “no relatives” policy adopted by the city council as part of its Affirmative Action Plan.3

On August 2, 1976,…