Terrence O'Donnell's route to the Ohio Supreme Court took a little longer than he had hoped - nearly 2½ years longer. But that made getting there even more of "a special day" for the former Ohio appeals judge.

"This is a terrific honor for me," O'Donnell, a Republican from Cleveland, said Monday after being appointed by Gov. Bob Taft to replace Justice Deborah Cook, who was recently confirmed by the U.S. Senate to the federal appeals bench. O'Donnell will be sworn in next Monday.

Taft made a wise pick. O'Donnell seemed a likely choice, as he had run well and honorably statewide in 2000 against incumbent Alice Robie Resnick. We endorsed him then, citing his "integrity and a strong conviction to decide cases on the law."

"I'm hoping to bring good balance to the court with my experience and training," he said Monday. A justice's task, he added, is clear: "determining the facts, identifying the issues, applying the law to the facts and interpreting the law, not making law."

O'Donnell possesses the kind of temperament and outlook we should value in our state's highest court. But already, Ohio Democrats are attacking his selection, saying the 2000 campaign's controversial "Justice for Sale" attack ads against Resnick make him a bad choice that will further poison relationships in the court.

That is nonsense. The crux of the problem was that candidates had no control over those ads, and thus over their own campaign messages. The high-stakes campaigns were funded by independent interest groups - that arrogantly assumed electing "their" candidate would produce rulings favorable to them. In 2000, O'Donnell disavowed the ads, and Resnick took pains to say she didn't think he was involved with them.

Besides, these unseemly ads have come from both sides. Last fall, a late "Miscarriage of Justice" campaign against Justice Evelyn Stratton was bankrolled by a union/trial lawyer coalition.

O'Donnell, who in 2000 vowed he'd maintain his independence and carry no political agenda, said he won't hesitate to speak out and protect that independence. "I certainly would reject anybody attempting to hijack a campaign," he said, "and I would hope to reinforce people's confidence in the integrity of the justice system."

Good. We expect candidates on both sides to take a doubly tough line on such attack tactics next year. And we congratulate Justice O'Donnell on his appointment.