INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Supreme Court has issued an order of reprimand against the state’s attorney general Todd Rokita.
The case stemmed from a disciplinary complaint against the A.G. in relation to comments he made to media outlets and other public statements between July 2022 and September 2022 regarding an investigation into Dr. Caitlin Bernard.
According to court documents filed Thursday, the justices proposed that the respondent Rokita receive a public reprimand for his misconduct.
The commission claimed that Rokita violated various portions of the Indiana Rule of Professional Conduct when he spoke about the pending investigation into Bernard to Fox News host Jesse Watters on July 13, 2022, and other statements.
The Supreme Court said the commission investigates and prosecutes allegations of attorneys accused of violating the Indiana Professional Rules of Conduct.
Previous reports showed Bernard, an Indianapolis obstetrician-gynecologist who performed an abortion on a 10-year-old rape victim, was found to have violated patient privacy laws by talking publicly about the procedure.
During a May hearing, Bernard said she did nothing wrong and that she complied with all patient confidentiality and HIPPA laws.
Bernard was featured in a story from the Indy Star on July 1 speaking about the procedure. The documents stated Bernard performed an abortion on a 10-year-old from Ohio who was six weeks and three days pregnant after the child was referred to Bernard by an Ohio doctor.
On July 2, Bernard submitted a termination of pregnancy report to the Department of Health, which was forwarded to the Indiana Department of Child Services.
After Bernard made public comments in July 2022, Rokita opened an investigation into the doctor after six complaints were made to the A.G.’s office about Bernard’s “performance of a termination procedure on a 10-year-old.”
According to the documents, none of the complainants were Bernard’s patients.
On July 13, Rokita appeared on Watters’ show to speak about the Bernard investigation. During the interview, Rokita told Watters, in front of a national audience, that Bernard is an “abortion activist acting as a doctor – with a history of failing to report.”
A news release was then released by Rokita’s office the next day, which stated that the investigation is ongoing and the office is “waiting for the relevant documents to prove if the abortion and/or the abuse were reported.” Rokita also discussed the investigation of Bernard in multiple other media interviews.
Rokita was charged because the commission claimed he violated multiple portions of the Indiana Rule of Professional Conduct.
Rokita released the following statement:
“First things first: I deny and was not found to have violated anyone’s confidentiality or any laws. I was not fined. And I will continue as Indiana’s duly elected attorney general.
Despite the failed attempt to derail our work —which could have disenfranchised nearly 2 million voters, the largest amount in Indiana history for any state office candidate — it all boiled down to a truthful 16-word answer I gave over a year ago during an international media storm caused by an abortionist who put her interests above her patient’s. I received a ‘public reprimand’ for saying that “…we have this abortion activist acting as a doctor— with a history of failing to report.”
The media, medical establishment and cancel culture, all on cue, supported—and then attempted to vindicate—the abortionist who intentionally exposed personal health information at a political rally all in furtherance of their shared ideological and business interests.
These liberal activists would like to cancel your vote because they hate the fact I stand up for liberty. In the healthcare space alone, I stopped the vaccine mandate, publicly contested severely flawed COVID data, significantly curtailed Indiana’s abortion business, and fined hospitals and healthcare providers for not putting patients’ privacy first.
Having evidence and explanation for everything I said, I could have fought over those 16 words, but ending their campaign now will save a lot of taxpayer money and distraction, which is also very important to me. In order to resolve this, I was required to sign an affidavit without any modifications.
Now, I will focus even more resources on successfully defending Indiana’s laws, including our pro-life laws, and fighting the mob that silences parents, employees, conservative students, law enforcement, Believers of all faiths, American patriots, and the free enterprise itself.
As I said at the time, my words are factual. The IU Health physician who caused the international media spectacle at the expense of her patient’s privacy is by her own actions an outspoken abortion activist.
Many know that she openly discussed with a reporter, and caused to be identified, a 10-year-old rape victim at a political rally. She also used this opportunity to wedge herself into various media outlets, including MSNBC and CBS News. In the end, she had the attention of the entire country, including the pro-abortion President and Vice President.
Less well-known is that for years she has appeared as the keynote speaker at pro-abortion rallies and has roamed the hallways of the legislature in a white lab coat attempting to influence lawmakers. Then, in 2019, the doctor unsuccessfully brought litigation against the people of Indiana to legalize a brutal abortion procedure where the living child is extracted piece by piece. She also poses and is interviewed regularly in media outlets and her full-time patient practice focuses exclusively on performing abortions.
Bernard also claims a tattoo —an image of a coat hanger— that she displays and openly discusses with the national media. Whether you think this behavior is good or bad, I challenge any objective Hoosier to conclude that she isn’t an “abortion activist,” as I stated.
Also, according to media accounts and complainant press releases, it was in fact publicly alleged well before my TV interview that the abortionist had failed to properly report her work to the state’s Department of Health.
Privacy must exist between doctor and patient in order for trust to exist so that healthcare can advance. So, we work hard to protect personal health information—like a little girl’s identity and medical trauma—from publication by their caregivers. This is why Bernard’s own peers fined her the maximum allowed by law.
By the way, the Office of the Attorney General has nearly two dozen patient privacy cases pending at any time, debunking any claims of a vendetta against Bernard.
Had the cancel culture establishment been successful in disenfranchising us, they also would have stifled other elected officials from keeping voters, citizens, and taxpayers informed—especially when uncomfortable facts fall outside a preferred narrative.
I thank Hoosiers for their continued support as we fight for our values.”
