Attorney General Accuser Sought Guidance To 'Strengthen' Attack

INDIANAPOLIS, IN — Attorney General Curtis Hill released a statement Thursday in response to a July 11 statement issued by one of the women accusing him of inappropriately touching them at a March event. In a release from the office of the Indiana Attorney General, officials say an email of a "draft" from the accuser's General Assembly email account was received by the office.

The following is Hill's response to the email, sent in a release from office officials:

“On July 11, 2018, the Office of the Attorney General received an email of a draft ‘story’ from the accuser’s General Assembly email account. The statement was blind copied to the office email account of the accuser’s close friend, whose employment with the OAG had recently been terminated.“In her draft ‘story,’ she editorialized her recollection of events. And she asked for help, stating: 'Please find the final draft for my statement attached. Please let me know if there are any grammatical errors or phrases that need to be changed/strengthened/eliminated. Thanks!'"

Hill's statement continued, "It’s clear that the integrity of this investigation is compromised. The various stories appear to be coordinated and changed under the direction of others. We believe these emails could be material to an investigation. We would hope that any emails sent on state equipment between the accuser and others be preserved and not deleted.”

The email draft can be viewed online.

This update comes less than two weeks after accusations from four woman were released on July 2 in a report via The Indianapolis Star, alleging Hill inappropriately touched them during a March party at an Indianapolis bar on the last day of the legislative session.

Patch reported that during a press conference on Monday morning, July 9, at the Attorney General's Statehouse Office downtown, Hill didn't take long to explain he will not resign from his position, saying the allegations against him are false. According to a release from the Attorney General's Office, AG Hill said he now stands "falsely and publicly accused of abhorrent behavior."

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Hill cited the U.S. Constitution while discussing justice and fairness, Hill also said, "I never dreamed this could happen to me, and yet here I stand. I stand before you a condemned man. Condemned without trial, condemned without notice. Condemned without the benefit of any basic rights that ensure fairness."

The July 11 email and Hill's response come nearly one week after Patch reported more legislative officials joined the ranks of those requesting an investigation into allegations made against Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill, while many from both parties are calling on him to resign, including Gov. Eric Holcomb.

Indiana's Inspector General Lori Torres said officials from the state's Republican and Democratic parties are seeking a formal investigation into the allegations, adding that her office is prepared to do a formal investigation.

Photo and video credit: Office of Indiana Attorney General

Note: Video is of the July 9 press conference, not July 7 as dated.