Opinion ID: 853499
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Response to Commission Inquiry

Text: On November 25, 1996, the Commission filed a grievance against Darren, referring to the possibility of a conflict of interest due to the Cole Law Office advertisement which identified Scott as a prosecutor and the office's acceptance of Criminal Defense and Drunk Driving/DUI cases. In response to notification of the grievance, Darren stated that the only cases in which he had been involved that even closely resembled criminal or infraction cases were the juvenile case and a restricted license case (see footnote 2, infra ). He added: Both cases were resolved well before the advertisement came out and before I was sworn in as a Tippecanoe County Deputy Prosecutor. In fact, Darren was attorney of record in both cases after he began work as a deputy prosecutor for Tippecanoe County, despite the fact that he was not formally sworn in as a deputy prosecutor until February 1997. Professional Conduct Rule 8.1(b) provides that an attorney shall not fail to disclose facts necessary to correct a misapprehension known by him to have arisen in connection with a disciplinary matter. By failing to advise the Commission that he actually began work as a Tippecanoe County deputy prosecutor on August 13, 1996, prior to his formal swearing in, and disclosing only that both cases were resolved well before he was sworn in, Darren violate the rule.