Johnson County prosecutor publicly reprimanded for 2014 comments

Johnson County prosecutor Brad Cooper was publicly reprimanded by the Indiana Supreme Court disciplinary commission Friday for comments he made to reporters about the judge who set aside the death penalty for a convicted killer.

The order, filed Friday, found Cooper in violation of the professional conduct rule, "which prohibits making a statement that the lawyer knows to be false or with reckless disregard as to its truth or falsity concerning the qualifications or integrity of a judge."

Cooper told IndyStar via text message Friday night that the ruling reaffirmed a hearing judge's January recommendation for reprimand. He framed a printed copy of the reprimand and "hung it next to the sentencing order of death" on his office wall, he said.

He declined to comment further on the reprimand.

A complaint was filed following comments he made to IndyStar and The Associated Press questioning the decision to bypass the death penalty for Michael Dean Overstreet, who was convicted of the 1997 rape and murder of 18-year-old Franklin College student Kelly Eckart. Cooper was a deputy prosecutor on the team that won Overstreet's conviction in 2000.

The Indiana Supreme Court moved the Overstreet case to St. Joseph County after Johnson Superior Court Judge Cynthia Emkes recused herself for health reasons. The new judge, Jane Woodward Miller, later ruled Overstreet was not competent to be executed.

"I was angry and suspicious when this case was sent to a distant judge who is not accountable to the Johnson County citizenry or a grieving mother who couldn't even afford to drive up for the hearing," Cooper told IndyStar via text message in 2014. "The idea that this convicted rapist murdering monster is too sick to be executed is nothing short of outrageous and is an injustice to the victim, her mother, the jury and the hundreds of people who worked to convict this animal."

The Indiana Supreme Court disciplinary commission investigates misconduct claims against Indiana lawyers and protects lawyers from unwarranted misconduct claims. It also has the power to issue licensing suspensions or disbarments.

IndyStar reporter Vic Ryckaert contributed to this story.

Call IndyStar reporter Holly Hays at (317) 444-6156. Follow her on Twitter: @hollyvhays.

Related: 

Johnson County Prosecutor Brad Cooper faces possible sanctions for press comments

Prosecutor: Ruling an injustice to those "who worked to convict this animal"