06162016 - News Article - Special prosecutor now at the wheel of DUI probe

Special prosecutor now at the wheel of DUI probe
NWI Times
Jun 16, 2016
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/crime-and-court/special-prosecutor-now-at-the-wheel-of-dui-probe/article_663f41a6-0f9c-5028-94c7-afae14593067.html

CROWN POINT — A special prosecutor is taking over a state police investigation into the suspected concealment of traffic convictions in Lake Station City Court.

LaPorte County Prosecutor John M. Espar has accepted a request by state police to help determine whether a number of drunken driving and other traffic cases were improperly handled between 2008 and 2012, according to the Lake County prosecutor’s office.

Indiana State Police 1st Sgt. Al Williamson said this is an automatic precaution in cases of potential public corruption to avoid an appearance of a conflict of interest.

“A lot of times when we investigate these political type of cases, we ask for a special prosecutor of a different county for transparency reasons,” Williamson said. “We do this from the start so in case we have a question, we work right with that prosecutor.”

Lake Prosecutor Bernard Carter, who brought state police into the probe last month, agreed with them and made the official request for an outside prosecutor. Senior Lake Criminal Court Judge Salvador Vasquez ordered Espar’s appointment last week.

Williamson said of the investigation, “It is still in the infancy stages. We are having preliminary interviews. There is a lot of documentation to gather. We are working with the BMV and other branches to look at this on a case-by-case basis.”

The county prosecutes hundreds of local traffic offenders each year. State law requires local courts to submit traffic convictions to the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles to enforce any court-ordered driving restrictions and for inclusion in drivers’ permanent driving histories.

Carter first requested the investigation last month after looking into why the City Court failed to submit to the BMV a 2011 reckless driving conviction for Randolph L. “Randy” Palmateer, 37, business manager for the Northwestern Indiana Building and Construction Trades Council.

He said his office discovered the Lake Station City Court hadn’t submitted other convictions and notices of driving suspensions downstate.

Mayor Christopher Anderson, who was Lake Station city judge at the time, said earlier that Miranda Brakley was clerk of the city’s court from 2008 to 2012 and responsible for transmitting convictions and driving restrictions to the BMV.

Carter said last month it appeared she intentionally refused to do so. Thomas Vanes, a Merrillville attorney representing Brakley, said their suspicion of his client is unwarranted.

He said Anderson and Brakley and former Mayor Keith Soderquist, Brakley’s stepfather, were involved in a feud. The Soderquist family had complained of improprieties in Anderson’s court to the prosecutor and federal authorities four years ago, but authorities showed no interest at that time.

Anderson fired Brakley and triggered a state audit that resulted in her guilty plea in January to embezzling about $16,000 from Lake Station City Court.

Brakley is awaiting sentencing July 7 for the theft, and Keith Soderquist awaits sentencing July 13 for pleading guilty to trying to cover up the theft.

Keith Soderquist and his wife, Deborah, also are scheduled to be sentenced July 13 for illegally using his campaign and the city’s food pantry money to gamble at area casinos.