By Steve Kemme
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Kennedy

Spillane

HAMILTON - Three Butler County judges fired back Tuesday at County Commissioner Mike Fox, who last week released a scathing 78-page report accusing them of trampling on the rights of parents and children.

Domestic Relations Judges Leslie Spillane and Sharon Kennedy and Juvenile Court Judge David Niehaus disputed all of Fox's allegations, including accusations that those courts often tolerate false testimony, allow costly delays, fail to enforce court orders and exclude the principal parties from hearings.

They have asked a Butler County grand jury and the U.S. Department of Justice's Public Integrity Section to investigate whether perjury or other criminal wrongdoing occurred in 10 cases mentioned by Fox in his report or during commissioners' meetings.

The three judges issued a joint statement read by Kennedy that likened Fox's criticism of domestic relations and juvenile courts to 1950s McCarthyism and its Communist witch-hunts and smear tactics.

She said she expects the grand jury and Justice Department to exonerate the courts and to "bolster the public's trust and confidence in our justice system."

"To allow unsubstantiated allegations to continue is an injustice," Kennedy said. "I think it's time for someone who is independent and without an agenda to look at these cases."

Fox said grand jury and Justice Department investigations wouldn't address his criticism of the way the courts operate or the 31 recommendations he made in his report for improving the courts.

The Public Integrity Section doesn't investigate perjury allegations, and in many of these cases, the criminal statute of limitations has expired, he said.

"I'm not interested in punishing those folks who committed those acts, but in changing court procedures so that they occur less frequently," Fox said.

Spillane attended the press conference, but Niehaus did not. Rob Clevenger, juvenile court administrator, was there.

Fox said in his report that in investigating seven cases, he found 13 instances of someone providing false information to the court.

Fox said that in one custody battle, for example, Butler County psychologist Dr. Roger Fisher had testified in the courts of Spillane and Niehaus that he had counseled two children many more times that he actually had.

This gave Fisher's opinions about custody more credence than they deserved and affected the outcome of the case, Fox said.

Last year, the state removed Fisher's license because of complaints accusing him of submitting psychological evaluations in four Butler County Domestic Relations Court cases without interviewing the subjects.

In another case, a man involved in a divorce failed to report his pension when informing Domestic Relations Court about his financial assets, Fox said.

False testimony and other issues, such as closed hearings, unnecessary delays and lax enforcement of court rules, affect the outcomes of many divorce, custody and visitation cases, he said.

Kennedy said Domestic Relations and Juvenile courts will prepare a written response to the noncriminal allegations in Fox's report, "A Culture of Secrecy, Fear and Judicial Abuse." She said the response will be ready sometime in June.

E-mail skemme@enquirer.com