Picking up on a theme in a recent blog post by IU Robert McKinney School of Law Professor Joel Schumm at the Indiana Law Blog, Marion Co. GOP candidate Duane Merchant issues a press release today taking Marion Co. Prosecutor Terry Curry to task for "rampant prosecutorial misconduct" happening under his watch since taking office in January 2011. Merchant's press release notes that Schumm's blog observed "22 cases since January 2012 in which an Indiana appellate court has found improper conduct by Democrat Prosecutor Terry Curry’s office." Schumm concluded, "Terry Curry, who was elected in 2010, is either oblivious to or unfazed by these opinions." The press release goes on to say:
Prosecutor candidate Duane Merchant vows to make changes. “I spent more than 20 years of my career as a Deputy Prosecutor and I’ve never heard of such an egregious number of violations,” stated Merchant. “There is simply no excuse for Prosecutor Curry to tolerate this level of misconduct. He is charged with leading that office and he has failed his legal duty to ensure that deputies conform to the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct.”
If elected Prosecutor, Merchant plans a full review of all policies and procedures within the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office. “As Prosecutor, I’ll make it clear from day one that prosecutorial misconduct will not be tolerated and those who violate those rules will be held accountable,” concluded Merchant.
Duane Merchant is a veteran attorney with over 25 years of experience. He served over two decades as a Marion County Deputy Prosecutor. Duane has successfully prosecuted over 100 jury trials and well over a thousand court trials. He has also served in many supervisory roles during his tenure at the Marion County Prosecutor’s office.
Schumm's blog post is well worth the read, which you can access
here. He is equally as critical of the Supreme Court for failing to "expect at least as much of
lawyers in the justice systems as it does [from non-lawyers]." "The Indiana Supreme Court leads the State’s judicial system," Schumm wrote. "If it shows little or no concern about prosecutor misconduct, one cannot expect the Court of Appeals, the Disciplinary Commission, and others to care much either."
In Indiana,
ReplyDeleteThe government is always right, and
The ends justify the means.
Don't look for much to change. if you want to be a good lawyer in Indiana, take the cases that are going to win.
We see how Brizzi flopped when he changed sides.
Incompetence? Perhaps. Maybe there are particular deputy prosecutors that have their heads and minds wandering from their work?
ReplyDeleteIf the prosecutor were to have a surprise drug test for his staff tomorrow morning,I wonder how many wouldn't pass?
If I were a betting man,I wouldn't hesitate to bet the farm and my life savings that at least one wouldn't pass the test.
There has always been hypocrisy in that office.
Arrogance breeds contempt.
FWIW, there's a HUGE difference between prosecutorial misconduct in the middle of a heated trial and prosecutorial misconduct that's planned, deliberated & carried out (example: nondisclosure of good, solid exculpatory evidence). I voted for Duane in May & will again in November. However, I will note that the deputy prosecutors in Marion County that I've dealt with have been honest, diligent & communicative.
ReplyDelete