NAPOLEON — David Busick, Napoleon’s new city law director, said the job is about responding to situations that develop.
“You’re pretty much a catch-all. There are things I can do proactively to try to alleviate things in the future, and there’s a lot of stuff that just kind of happens,” he said.
And he’s okay with that.
“It’s the job,” said Busick, the replacement for Billy Harmon who stepped aside earlier this year. “Every day is different. I would have never made it as a contract lawyer — sit here and review contracts all day. That’s not the way I’m wired. I like having three different things already across my desk this morning.”
Born in Wellston, in south central Ohio, his family soon moved to West Milton, in the Dayton area. He graduated from Milton Union High School in 1983, then attended Ohio State University, graduating in 1987.
While at OSU, Busick was involved in the United State Marine Corps’ Platoon Leaders Course.
In the PLC, students attend summer training sessions at Officers Candidate School. Upon college graduation, they earn a commission as a second lieutenant in the Corps.
But just before graduation, while on a hike in the middle of the night, he encountered a washout on a dark, rainy road. He had an accident while carrying a full combat load, and, “managed to screw up my leg 14 different ways.”
After graduating from OSU, he married Dawn, from Liberty Center. They went on to have three daughters, who are now grown and out of the house. He and Dawn have grandkids, a set of twins, who live not far from his office.
He worked in Fulton County for two years. He went on to the University of Toledo College of Law, graduating in 1993. While attending UT, he did an internship with the City of Napoleon.
He then served as Auglaize County prosecutor for 3 1/2 years. Then it was back to Napoleon.
“I was a solicitor, an acting law director, special prosecutor, and I had a small private practice in the area,” he said.
That’s a lot of hats to wear.
“A lot of time spent in a car, going from here to there,” he said.
Then he worked in Maumee, starting as an assistant prosecutor, eventually becoming law director. After that, he went to Sidney for five years, where he served as city attorney.
Sidney, Busick said, was a great job opportunity. It’s just one county north of where he’d grown up, “so I was pretty familiar with stuff down there.”
What interested him in Napoelon?
“It was the first place I ever prosecuted at, way back in the old days. I’ve been familiar with the town since, oh my gosh, since 1986,” he said.
While working in Sidney, his family remained in the Napoleon area, so for him, the Napoleon position was a chance to come home.
Busick said the job has been so far, so good.
There were “a couple of active situations I walked into,” which he said is perhaps better than having nothing going on at all. He added the people in the office, “have been super good, too.”
For the citizens on Napoleon, Busick said, “if there’s a question that I can answer, I’d be happy to do it. If you, say, have a legal issue with the city, I can’t give you advice, and I can’t give legal advice to anyone except for the city.”
But otherwise, “the lights are on, the door’s open.”