Published: May 09, 2008 11:20 pm            

Accused deputy prosecutor speaks out

Steele says Judge Jessup owes him an apology for drug abuse allegation.

For nearly a month, Deputy Prosecutor David Steele has kept silent after being accused of doing drugs by Howard Superior Court 2 Judge Stephen Jessup.

On Friday, Steele decided to end his silence and defend himself.

“I do not take drugs,” Steele told the Kokomo Tribune.

“I unequivocally deny any and all drug use whatsoever and, at this point, not even the judge believes I actually take drugs.”

The accusation by Jessup came after Steele failed to show for an April 18 hearing concerning a client’s guilty plea.

Steele had fellow prosecutor Michael Krebes sit in for him at the hearing, which is common practice among attorneys.

But Jessup was upset because he previously warned Steele in November 2007 not to miss another hearing.

When Steele failed to show for the April 18 hearing, Jessup halted the proceedings and called Steele’s secretary, whom he told to find Steele. Jessup then went downstairs to the office of Howard County Prosecutor James Fleming. There, Jessup allegedly accused Steele of “shooting up.”

Steele said he has kept quiet this long in fear of retribution from the judge, but said he felt it was time to let people know his side.

“I have had an enormous amount of difficulty biting my tongue throughout this process, but it now seems time I address it,” Steele said.

He said he had hoped it wouldn’t be necessary for him to stoop so low “as to answer such an utterly asinine comment.”

Steele said when he heard the allegation, he wanted the truth to come out.

“I voluntarily took a urine test even though I felt it violated every civil right I went to law school to protect. Obviously, the drug test came back completely clean.”

The test, he said, was forwarded to his boss, Prosecutor Fleming, and to the Judicial Qualification Committee, which is investigating Jessup’s actions.

Fleming confirmed Steele tested negative on a drug screen performed at Howard Regional Health System and that the results were sent to the commission.

Steele also claims Jessup tried to take back his accusation.

“[Jessup] called my office five times the next day until he finally left a message that said, ‘Don’t worry about any of it ... you don’t have to call a half an hour before your hearings. I take it all back,’” Steele said.

But the attorney wasn’t satisfied with the judge’s apology.

“You don’t get to take a statement like that back,” Steele said.

“He is quick to admit that he heard a rumor. Lest he forget, we live in Kokomo. There are rumors everywhere about everyone. It’s sad he chose to believe this one and repeat it in front of a room of my peers. I am a husband, the father of a 3-year-old girl, a prosecutor and I run my own law firm. The vast majority of heroin addicts don’t have their life together to that extent.”

Steele also said he’s hoping the commission will punish Jessup for these actions.

“I want this ordeal over, and I want the Judicial Qualification Committee to render a decision, and I fully expect it to be more severe than anyone is expecting — very severe.

“I want vindication for these acts I didn’t do,” Steele continued. “The judge’s actions are defamatory and well, well below the standard of behavior we expect from judges. In the interim, Judge Jessup needs to make an apology to both myself and my family.”

When called Friday, Jessup declined comment on the matter.

Several attorneys, including Steele, told the Tribune that a judicial inquiry into Jessup’s actions is under way.

The attorneys, who wish to remain anonymous, said they have received phone calls from the Indiana Judicial Qualifications Commission concerning Jessup’s statements.

Meg Babcock, of the Indiana Judicial Qualifications Commission, said rules prohibit her from saying if anyone is being investigated by the commission.

The conflict between Jessup and Steele also resulted in the disqualification of Jessup on criminal cases filed by Steele, which can affect caseloads in other courts, Fleming said.

To alleviate that problem, Fleming said Steele has been re-assigned to file his cases in other courts and another deputy prosecutor has replaced Steele in Superior Court 2.

“This should solve the immediate problem of case transfer,” Fleming said. “Hopefully, the transfer of cases within our staff will not cause any undo hardship on victims, witnesses or law enforcement personnel.”

        

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