A state senator wants to keep pressing her professional misconduct complaint against Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita after the commission that reviews such allegations decided not to take action in the case.
Rokita’s office released a letter from the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission about the grievance — filed in May by Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne — after she told the Indiana Capital Chronicle last week that the case remained pending.
Brown submitted the complaint after Rokita said in a radio interview that she used her position as Senate Judiciary Committee chair to block an immigration enforcement bill last session because she has an “illegal alien” in her family.
Brown called that claim “blatantly false” and argued Rokita violated rules against lawyers making false statements.
The Disciplinary Commission, however, reviewed a response submitted by Rokita’s attorneys and “voted to close the matter,” the letter said. It was dated Nov. 14 and signed by commission Executive Director Adrienne Meiring.
Brown told the Capital Chronicle this week that she has filed an appeal of that decision. She declined further comment.
Rokita’s lawyers argued in his response that Brown’s grievance was “meritless on its face” and was filed in retaliation for statements protected under First Amendment free speech rights.
“Senator Brown violated the First Amendment by retaliating with an arm of the government, and the Commission violated the First Amendment by giving effect to her retaliation,” the response said. “The Commission should have recognized the political, retaliatory nature of her grievance — as well as its substantive failure to raise a substantial question of misconduct and its affront to the freedom of speech — and dismissed the grievance without demanding a response from General Rokita.”
Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathryn Dolan said someone filing a grievance may ask the Disciplinary Commission to reconsider its decision. But Dolan said she could not provide any details about a grievance that does not result in the commission seeking disciplinary action.
Ongoing conflict
The dispute between Rokita and Brown continues on the legislative front, as the attorney general’s office last week criticized Senate Bill 76, authored by Brown, as an “inadequate response” to prevent businesses from hiring people who are in the country illegally. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 6-2 to advance the bill to the full Senate, which could take up the proposal in January.
Rokita and Republican U.S. Sen. Jim Banks have repeatedly criticized Brown on social media over the bill she blocked in her committee last session.
They also are backing Darren Vogt, who works on Banks’ Senate staff and is a Northwest Allen County Schools board member, in a GOP primary challenge to Brown’s 2026 reelection bid.
The Supreme Court justices issued a reprimand in 2023 against Rokita over comments he made during a Fox News interview about Indianapolis physician Dr. Caitlin Bernard, who performed an abortion for a 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio.
The justices voted in October to dismiss separate misconduct allegations against Rokita stemming from his defiant response to that reprimand decision.
Indiana Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Indiana Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Niki Kelly for questions: info@indianacapitalchronicle.com.