Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita is being investigated by the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission, according to a petition filed by a lawyer wanting to represent Rokita in the case he brought before the medical licensing board against IU Health OB-GYN Caitlin Bernard.
It is unclear what Rokita is being investigated for. However, the lawyer — Gene Schaerr — has previously filed petitions to represent him in Bernard V. Rokita and the Disciplinary Commission’s investigation into grievances from Indiana attorneys against Rokita, according to the petition. Since Shaerr is representing Rokita in other cases involving Bernard, it appears that the Disciplinary Commission investigation is connected to Rokita’s comments and actions toward Bernard.
[Related: Indiana Supreme Court to hear arguments in abortion ban challenge]
Days after the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Bernard performed an abortion on a 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio. Rokita then filed a complaint against Bernard with the Indiana Medical Board in November 2022. The complaint argued that Bernard did not follow patient privacy laws.
IU Health officials said that Bernard did follow patient privacy laws in the 10-year-old's case.
Bernard filed a lawsuit against Rokita in November 2022 that claimed he used consumer complaints from people who were not patients of Bernard to access medical records. Bernard dropped the lawsuit in December. Shaerr represented Rokita in this case.
