“Sometimes Things Happen In A Case”
The Indiana Supreme Court has imposed an emergency interim suspension of an attorney who was the subject of this story in the August 2011 online ABA Journal:
A prominent Southern Indiana criminal lawyer who formerly worked as a public defender and ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the bench several years ago has been arrested on drug charges along with her boyfriend.
Leah Fink, 47, is accused of having a meth lab in her home, which she and Jeremy Ripperdan, 40, allegedly used as a base for manufacturing and selling the drug, according to the Courier-Journal and WLKY.
The two were arrested following a raid on the home in Corydon early this morning by the Harrison County Sheriff’s office and state police following a two-month investigation.
At last report Fink was being held in the Harrison County Jail in lieu of $40,000 cash bond on charges of manufacturing meth and possession of meth and marijuana, among others.
“This just points out how powerful these drugs can be,” said Harrison County Sheriff Rod Seelye, describing Fink as someone from a well-regarded family who “has an addiction issue.”
The News and Tribune and WAVE also have stories.
The articles don’t include any comment from Fink, Ripperdan or their counsel. Her law office was closed today. Admitted in 1991, Fink is in good standing with no attorney disciplinary history.
The Indiana Lawyer recently reported
Former public defender Leah Fink was arrested more than three years ago after police in southern Indiana found the makings of a meth lab that they connected to her and a boyfriend with a lengthy criminal record.
While her Class B felony dealing methamphetamine charge and four other felonies were pending in Harrison County, Fink, 49, was arrested again in June with co-defendant Jeremy Ripperdan. She was charged in Clark County with dealing meth and two other felonies.
Fink’s first charges, as well as similar counts for Ripperdan, have been pending since August 2011.
“I’d say that’s unusual,” Clark County Prosecutor Steven D. Stewart said. “It’s unusual, but it’s not unheard of. Sometimes things happen in a case.”
What’s happened in Fink’s case caught the notice of the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission. Last month, by a required vote of at least two-thirds, the commission asked justices to order an emergency suspension of Fink’s law license. Allowing Fink to continue to practice would pose a threat of harm to clients, potential clients, and the administration of justice, the commission says.
“The commission has monitored (Fink’s) case in Harrison County both in conversations with the prosecuting attorney of Harrison County and by regular review of the (chronological case summary),” the petition says. “The case has a lengthy history,” including numerous continuances by Fink and an interlocutory appeal to the Court of Appeals, the commission noted.
“Everything that could drag a case out has happened here,” said Harrison County Prosecutor Otto Schalk. “There certainly has been some chatter among the community – what’s going to happen and when is it going to happen. It’s a fair conversation.”
Schalk said Fink’s case “certainly garnered some interest due to her profession. … We treated it like any other defendant, thinking that’s what justice requires and people expect.”
At IL deadline, Fink had not responded to the disciplinary petition. Barnes & Thornburg LLP partner Donald Lundberg is representing Fink in the disciplinary proceeding and said he could not discuss a client’s pending matter. Contacted by phone, Fink declined to comment.
The reports notes that the attorney spent at least 185 days in jail and has acknowledged an addiction problem.
The attorney has an inactive Kentucky license and is employed as a legal assistant at a Kentucky firm. Indiana prohibits a suspended attorney from “maintaining a presence in a law office.” She sought an order that would allow her to continue to work as a non-lawyer in Kentucky, which has no such prohibition.
The court denied the request. (Mike Frisch)