Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s office wants Athens County Sheriff Pat Kelly to turn over his list of confidential informants, but Kelly said he still doesn’t plan on complying.
As part of a longstanding grand jury investigation, Kelly met with retired Summit County Judge Patricia Ann Cosgrove and Ohio Asst. Attorney General Allan Regas on Monday to decide whether Kelly has to fork over the records.
Supreme Court Justice Maureen O’Connor appointed Cosgrove to the case.
Athens County Common Pleas Court Judge L. Alan Goldsberry asked for another judge to be appointed to the case, but didn’t specifically ask for Cosgrove, according to spokespeople from Goldsberry’s office.
The sheriff’s list of confidential informants are the people who helped provide information about current or ongoing cases. Kelly said he doesn’t want to release the records because it would be unsafe for innocent families and deputies.
“It’s a law enforcement privilege that we don’t have to release the informants if we don’t want to,” Kelly said. “It’s irresponsible for (DeWine) to put the lives of the informants and deputies and their families in jeopardy because when a law enforcement officer has confidential informants, that information either proves the innocence or guilt of a person.”
DeWine’s office scheduled the closed-door hearing, so Kelly declined to comment on it specifically but did say he’s generally displeased with the ongoing investigation.
“I said to the attorney general, ‘tell me what you want and I’ll give it to you,’ but they don’t know because they don’t have anything, they’re just trying to see if they can find something,” he said. “They’re just on a fishing expedition...There’s nothing there, that’s why they just keep going after something.”
Spokespeople for DeWine’s office denied to comment.
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