Special judge appointed in Jamey Noel's civil case

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A special judge appointed in the $4 million fraud case against former Clark County Sheriff Jamey Noel has been cut out of part of the proceedings.

Judge Larry Medlock had been overseeing both the criminal and civil cases against Noel.

NOEL HEARING — Clark County special judge Larry Medlock on May 6, 2024.

The former sheriff is accused of using credit cards from New Chapel EMS and the Utica Fire Department, which he used to run, to fund his and his family's lifestyle — paying for a massive car collection, an airplane, and bills for his kids — including rent and college tuition — among other things.

Noel has been asked by the state to pay back more than $4 million he's accused of using from the fire department and EMS company.

Medlock will stay on the criminal case, but the state of Indiana has appointed Judge Roger Duvall to oversee the effort to recoup the $4 million in civil court.

Noel served as Clark County sheriff from 2015-23 and also led New Chapel Fire/EMS and the Utica Township Volunteer Fire Department.

The former sheriff was arrested in November 2023 on 15 felony charges related to fraud, misconduct, theft, ghost employment and public corruption after a nearly yearlong investigation, which remains ongoing. Another 10 charges were filed against him in early February, including theft and tax evasion.

He'd been out of jail after posting a $75,000 cash bond. As one of the terms of his release, Noel was prohibited from having firearms, aside from a shotgun for "personal protection." But he was ordered to appear in court after two pistols were found by Indiana State Police detectives during a search of the family home.

Medlock ordered Noel back to jail for 60 days, finding him in contempt of court.

Six new charges were filed against Noel in early June. According to court documents, those include one count of money laundering and five additional counts of theft. In total, he now faces 31 charges.

Medlock increased Noel's bond amount to $1.5 million a day after the new charges were levied against him, so he was not released from jail at the end of his 60-day sentence.

Some of the theft accusations against Noel were outlined in an audit released in April of the Utica Township Volunteer Firefighters association and New Chapel EMS. The audit revealed Noel used taxpayer money to pay for vacations, Rolex watches, high-end clothing, child support, college tuition and more. The Indiana State Board of Accounts conducted the audit for the period of Jan. 1, 2019, to Dec. 31, 2023.

From 2019 to 2023, auditors said New Chapel received a total of $3.9 million in public money from Clark and Floyd counties. Over that same 4-year time period, Noel was paid $582,564 in wages, as listed on his W-2. But auditors said he was paid even more money off the books. Over that 4-year period, auditors said New Chapel made $4.4 million in payments on an American Express credit card — $2 million of which Noel spent alone.

The audit details the roughly $4.4 million Noel, his wife Misty, and daughter Kasey all racked up on the New Chapel EMS American Express credit card, roughly between 2019 and the end of 2023.

Noel and his family are now being ordered by the state to pay all of the money back, which is an estimated $4.4 million. That's in addition to the $918,000 he's been asked to repay after a state audit of the Clark County Sheriff's Office Jail Commissary fund. The audit covered 2015-17 and 2019-22.

A May court ruling prohibits the Noels from selling any assets as part of the state's civil suit against the former sheriff to recover the millions of dollars in alleged misused public money.

The ruling came after Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita asked a judge to issue an injunction and a restraining order to stop Noel, and his family, from selling assets such as cars, homes, jewelry and clothing so all public funds can be paid back. Ultimately, the judge issued the temporary restraining order to block sales of the Noel family's assets, which are now frozen.

Noel remains in the Scott County Jail on the $1.5 million bond after the Indiana Court of Appeals rejected an appeal from his attorneys that claimed the terms of his original $75,000 bond were too excessive.

The appeals court ruling issued on June 20 found the conditions of Noel's original bond were "not an abuse of discretion," with the court saying it was "unpersuaded" by the arguments presented by Noel's attorneys.

A jury trial for Noel is scheduled to begin in November.

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