Justice O'Donnell also served as chairman of the Ohio Legal Rights Service Commission, which oversees the protection and advocacy of the developmentally disabled and mentally ill statewide.

He was a past member of the board of trustees of Our Lady of the Wayside, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving the needs of the mentally and physically challenged where his brother, John, lived for 10 years until he died in 2011.

The couple has four adult children—Terrence, Michael, Colleen, and Nora, and eight grandchildren, Terrence, Charlie, Claire, Emmett, Kevin, Molly, Maggie, and Andrew.

Justice O’Donnell's term on the Supreme Court ended on Dec. 31, 2018, due to Ohio's mandatory age limits for judges.

[5] He and his wife Mary Beth reside in Rocky River, Ohio, and have four children: Terrence, Michael, Colleen and Nora.