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Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Ind. Courts - "Scheibenberger faces ethics, misconduct charges"

Rebecca S. Green reports in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette this afternoon in a story that begins:

The Indiana Commission on Judicial Qualifications took formal disciplinary proceedings Tuesday against Allen Superior Judge Kenneth R. Scheibenberger.

Alleging the judge violated rules of judicial ethics and committed willful misconduct while in office, the four-count statement of charges outlines a verbal exchange between Scheibenberger and the family of a criminal defendant.

On Nov. 30, Scheibenberger, while still wearing his robe, went into the courtroom of Allen Superior Judge Fran Gull and sat down in the gallery to witness the sentencing of a man accused of a weapons violation, according to court documents.

As the hearing concluded, Scheibenberger approached an Allen County deputy prosecutor and “created a disturbance,” telling the deputy prosecutor the defendant was a “drug dealer and declared ‘upstanding citizen, my (expletive deleted)’ in reference to a comment he heard during the sentencing,” according to court documents.

Then he turned to the man’s parents, seated in the front row, asking them if they were “related to that piece of (expletive deleted)? ‘Upstanding citizen, my (expletive deleted)! He’ll get his!’ or words to that effect,” according to court documents.

According to ther story, "Scheibenberger has 20 days to file a response to the charges."

Posted by Marcia Oddi on July 15, 2008 01:58 PM
Posted to Indiana Courts