ATTORNEY FOR HON. ATTORNEYS FOR THE COMMISSION
THOMAS J. FELTS, JUDGE ON JUDICIAL QUALIFICATIONS
J. Frank Kimbrough Margaret Babcock
Fort Wayne, Indiana Adrienne L. Meiring
Indianapolis, Indiana
______________________________________________________________________________
In the
Indiana Supreme Court
FILED
Mar 11 2009, 2:31 pm
_________________________________ CLERK
of the supreme court,
court of appeals and
tax court
No. 02S00-0901-JD-26
IN THE MATTER OF THE HONORABLE
THOMAS J. FELTS, JUDGE
IN THE ALLEN CIRCUIT COURT
_________________________________
JUDICIAL DISCIPLINARY ACTION
_________________________________
March 11, 2009
Per Curiam.
This matter comes before the Court as a result of a judicial disciplinary action brought by
the Indiana Commission on Judicial Qualifications (“Commission”) against Respondent herein,
Thomas J. Felts, Judge in the Allen Circuit Court. Article 7, Section 4 of the Indiana
Constitution and Indiana Admission and Discipline Rule 25 give the Indiana Supreme Court
original jurisdiction over this matter.
Subsequent to the filing of formal charges by the Commission, the parties jointly
tendered a “Statement of Circumstances and Conditional Agreement for Discipline” in which the
parties have stipulated to the following facts. On Friday, July 18, 2008, Respondent was arrested
and subsequently charged in the Marion Superior Court with operating a motor vehicle with an
alcohol concentration equivalent of at least .15 gram of alcohol per either 100 milliliters of the
person’s blood or 210 liters of the person’s breath, a Class A misdemeanor, see Ind. Code § 9-
30-5-1(b), and with Public Intoxication, a Class B misdemeanor, see Ind. Code § 7.1-5-1-3.
Pursuant to a plea agreement, Respondent pled guilty to the class A misdemeanor charge and the
State dismissed the remaining charge. The court sentenced Respondent to one year in the
Marion County Jail, suspended but for one day served, and to one year of probation. The court
accepted additional terms of the plea agreement that included the suspension of Respondent’s
driver’s license for ninety days, alcohol treatment with a private provider, attendance at a panel
presentation by Advocates Against Impaired Driving, Inc., and the payment of fines, costs, and
fees totaling $705.50.
Respondent and the Commission have agreed that driving with a blood alcohol
concentration of .15 constitutes a violation of Canons 1(A)1 and 2(A)2 of the Code of Judicial
Conduct, and that Respondent has violated these Canons. The parties have also agreed that
Respondent has cooperated with the Commission throughout these proceedings, and that the
appropriate sanction under the circumstances of this case is a public reprimand. The Court
agrees with the parties.
Accordingly, Thomas J. Felts, Judge in the Allen Circuit Court, is hereby reprimanded.
This discipline terminates the disciplinary proceedings relating to the circumstances giving rise
to this cause. The costs of this proceeding are assessed against Respondent.
SHEPARD, C.J., and DICKSON, SULLIVAN, BOEHM, and RUCKER, JJ., concur.
1
The version of Canon 1A in existence when Respondent committed these acts states:
An independent and honorable judiciary is indispensable to justice in our society. A judge
should participate in establishing, maintaining and enforcing high standards of conduct,
and shall personally observe those standards in order to preserve the integrity and
independence of the judiciary. The provisions of this Code are to be construed and
applied to further that objective.
Ind. Judicial Conduct Canon 1(A) (Thomson/West 2008).
2
The version of Canon 2A in existence when Respondent committed these acts states, “A judge shall
respect and comply with the law and shall act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in
the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.” Jud. Canon 2(A).
2