Culpeper VA May 17 2013 A week after being accused of assaulting a probation officer, Culpeper County Commonwealth’s Attorney Megan Frederick is now barred from Culpeper’s Juvenile & Domestic Relations Clerk’s Office, according to the Culpeper County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff Scott Jenkins confirmed Wednesday that while Frederick was indeed banned from the JDR Clerk’s Office, her staff is still allowed access to essential -- often confidential -- files stored in the clerk’s office involving countless court cases.
Romero added that the order to ban Frederick came from Culpeper’s JDR Clerk’s Office under the supervision of Bethany Ann McClanahan.
“The judge has knowledge of this request from the clerk,” continued Romero.
Romero said the sheriff’s office is responsible for securing the court and clerk’s offices and had no involvement in the clerk’s request.
However, Frederick said Wednesday that she learned about the clerk’s action via a one-sentence email from LeiLani Stanley, a CCSO employee who supervises the jail and court security.
Meanwhile, Frederick is still allowed access to both JDR courtrooms.
Last week, Culpeper probation officer Rhonda Ford claimed that Frederick grabbed her arm and spun her around after a court proceeding on May 9 in which both women were involved.
But Frederick firmly denied the claim.
“The absurdity of these accusations – and the public promulgation of them by the personnel of the sheriff’s office – is yet another example of things having spun out of control in the justice system in Culpeper,” Frederick wrote in a statement released May 10. “I never assaulted Rhonda Ford and claims to the contrary are ridiculous and absurd.”
As of Wednesday, no criminal charges had been filed against Frederick in the alleged assault incident being investigated by the CCSO.
In last Friday’s press release, Frederick said these particular claims stem from a policy dispute regarding SCRAMx, a new technology used in the Culpeper court system based on her suggestion.
“Disappointingly, the Culpeper County Criminal Justice Services Program, which employs Ms. Ford, views the use of this technology as a threat to their revenue stream instead of an advance in monitoring those on probation,” Frederick continued. “That Ms. Ford is an officer of the court only exacerbates this situation, demonstrating that she does not take her oath or her responsibility to be truthful very seriously.”
Frederick added that this claim isn’t the first time the sheriff's office has “acted to impede the commonwealth’s attorney office from performing its duties,” claiming that the records management system was clandestinely removed from the computers in her office earlier this year at the direction of Sheriff Jenkins.
In office only six months, Frederick’s term has been rife with controversy and strained relations with Sheriff Jenkins.
In March, Frederick held a press conference during which she revealed that the security in her office -- one building away from the CCSO -- had been breached and a note left on the office door saying, “Die, [expletive].”
Following this incident, the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors granted funding for a new keycard security system at Frederick’s office and she installed cameras. She is also seeking funding to hire her own investigator.
“I love my job,” Frederick said during the March 1 interview. “Bring it on. I’m not afraid of any of that.”
In November, Frederick defeated interim Commonwealth Attorney Paul Walther in a highly contested race for the office.
Walther, who served from March until November 2012, replaced his former boss Gary Close, who abruptly resigned after U.S. District Judge James C. Turk set aside Michael Wayne Hash’s 2001 murder conviction regarding the July 1996 brutal slaying of Thelma Scroggins.
Campaigning against what she deemed egregious mishandling of the Hash case, Frederick promised to restore integrity in Culpeper’s legal system.
Jenkins was lead investigator in the case that resulted in the arrest and conviction of Hash, who spent nearly 12 years in prison before being released last March. In December, Hash filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Jenkins, Close and others in the local criminal justice system. The case is set to be heard in Charlottesville federal court in April of 2014 with a first hearing in the matter scheduled for Monday.
Frederick’s term ends Dec. 31, 2015.
Source- The Daily Progress