Jeffersonville Deserves Better
An independent community resource examining Vicki Carmichael's 25-year judicial record and her candidacy for Mayor of Jeffersonville, Indiana.
An independent community resource examining Vicki Carmichael's 25-year judicial record and her candidacy for Mayor of Jeffersonville, Indiana.
Vicki L. Carmichael served as a judge on Clark County Circuit Court #4 for 25 years before retiring in December 2024. She started at Michigan State University but didn't finish there — she transferred to IU Southeast and got her law degree from the University of Louisville. She lost her first judicial election before finally winning a seat on the now-abolished Jeffersonville City Court in 1999. When that court was dissolved, she moved to the Circuit Court bench in 2006.
Over 25 years, she presided over a county judiciary in crisis. Three of her fellow judges were suspended after a drunken 3:30 AM brawl at a White Castle that ended with two of them being shot. A fourth judge was permanently banned from the bench after the Drug Court was shut down for "unlawful conduct" and "practices harmful to participants." The Clark County Sheriff — the county's top law enforcement officer — stole $3.1 million in taxpayer funds over a decade and pled guilty to 27 felonies, all while Carmichael was presiding judge. A serial sex offender's warrants went unserved for six months under her watch; he raped and murdered a 17-year-old girl.
Her own rulings were repeatedly overturned. The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed her in at least four separate cases — finding she "abused her discretion," made custody decisions "not supported by the evidence," got the law wrong on statutory authority, and "erred" in granting an injunction. In the Tandy murder case, a dissenting appeals judge wrote she would throw out the conviction entirely due to Carmichael allowing junk science and a gruesome autopsy photo that "served no purpose other than to inflame the jury." She consistently defaulted to maximum sentences — 30 years, 55 years, life without parole — drawing appeals alleging abuse of discretion.
The Indiana Supreme Court ruled against her for overstepping authority on probation funds. She ordered an unauthorized firing. She sued the County Council and cost taxpayers $14,000. She barely survived re-election in 2018, winning 53-47% against a former colleague who switched parties specifically to unseat her. The moment she stepped down, voters flipped her seat Republican — and it wasn't close.
She applied for her "dream job" on the Indiana Supreme Court multiple times across her career. The governor rejected her every time. Now she's running for mayor — while simultaneously working as a public defender in the same courthouse where she sentenced defendants for 25 years, and serving as a "senior judge" in neighboring counties. Three hats, obvious conflicts, and a record that speaks for itself.
25 years on the bench. This is what Clark County got.
Richard Hooten — a serial sex offender with six prior felony convictions including rape and sodomy across three states — raped and murdered 17-year-old Tara Rose Willenborg in 2013. He had an active warrant for failing to register as a sex offender that sat unserved for six months. Louisville Public Media found "Indiana's legal system gave Richard Hooten many chances — then a teenager died." Carmichael was the presiding judge overseeing the system that failed this girl.
Systemic FailureJoseph Oberhansley raped, murdered, and ate parts of his ex-girlfriend Tammy Jo Blanton in 2014. Under Carmichael's court, the case took six years to reach conviction. She granted a mistrial on day one of testimony. The victim's family waited from 2014 to 2020 for justice. The prosecutor himself said "Sometimes it's very frustrating in cases for everyone involved to see lengthy delays."
Justice DelayedIn May 2019, Clark County judges Brad Jacobs and Andrew Adams — who served alongside Carmichael — were out drinking at bars until 3:30 AM while attending a judicial conference in Indianapolis. They ended up at a White Castle, got into an argument with strangers in the parking lot, a fight broke out, and both judges were shot — Jacobs critically. A third judge, Crawford Circuit Judge Sabrina Bell, was also involved. The Indiana Supreme Court suspended all three, saying their behavior "discredited the entire Indiana judiciary." Carmichael was the presiding judge overseeing this courthouse culture for years.
Judiciary CrisisThe Indiana Judicial Center revoked Clark County's Drug Court certification in 2014 for "unlawful conduct" and "practices harmful to participants." Judge Jerry Jacobi — another one of Carmichael's Clark County colleagues — was permanently banned from the bench. A class action lawsuit followed. This happened under Carmichael's watch as presiding judge.
ScandalIn 2007, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that Carmichael and her fellow judges overstepped their authority on county probation funds. The court rebuked their attempt to control appropriations that weren't theirs to control. The state later stripped the supplemental probation fund entirely following misuse.
OverreachCarmichael ordered the firing of a probation employee through a director who was found to have "lacked the authority" to do so. She then sued the County Council over staffing demands, costing Clark County taxpayers $14,000 in legal fees paid from riverboat gambling funds. The council voted 6-1 to pay it just to make it go away.
Taxpayer CostPublic records and news coverage paint a picture voters should see. All stories are sourced from local and state media.
In 2007, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled in Clark County Council v. Donahue, Blau, Carmichael, and Fleece that Clark County judges — including Carmichael — overstepped their authority regarding probation fund appropriations. While the court agreed the County Council had misused funds, it also found the judges wrongly claimed the council's role was "purely ministerial." The Supreme Court rebuked the blurring of separation of powers.
The state later stripped the county's supplemental probation fund entirely following misuse of funds by the courts.
In 2014, it was determined that a probation department director who fired an employee had acted "on the orders of Circuit Court Presiding Judge Vicki Carmichael" — but lacked the authority to do so. The firing was found to be unauthorized.
In May 2019, Clark County judges Andrew Adams and Bradley Jacobs — along with Crawford Circuit Judge Sabrina Bell — were out drinking at bars until 3:30 AM in Indianapolis while attending a judicial conference. They ended up at a White Castle, got into an argument with strangers in the parking lot, a fight broke out, and both Adams and Jacobs were shot — Jacobs critically. The Indiana Supreme Court suspended all three, stating their behavior "discredited the entire Indiana judiciary."
As presiding judge, Carmichael issued a statement saying she was "shocked" — but questions remain about the culture of the Clark County judiciary she presided over for years. Adams was later voted out of office. Another Clark County judge, Jerry Jacobi, had already been forced to resign after misconduct in the drug court program.
The Indiana Judicial Center revoked the Clark County Drug Court's certification in 2014 due to "allegations of unlawful conduct by drug court staff and drug court practices harmful to participants." A class action lawsuit was filed against Judge Jerry Jacobi, who eventually agreed to never serve as a judicial officer again. Carmichael took over the troubled program under temporary certification.
In 2014, the Clark County Council voted 6-1 to use riverboat gambling funds to pay $14,000 in attorney fees after the council had tabled a request from Judge Carmichael for two additional probation positions. The dispute escalated to legal action, costing taxpayers.
Joseph Oberhansley was accused of raping, murdering, and eating parts of his ex-girlfriend Tammy Jo Blanton in 2014. The case dragged on for five years under Carmichael's watch before finally reaching trial in August 2019 — only for Carmichael to grant a mistrial on the first day of testimony after a witness mentioned inadmissible evidence.
The case was then further delayed when Oberhansley was again deemed incompetent in January 2020. He wasn't convicted until September 2020 — over six years after the murder. The victim's family endured years of delays, competency hearings, and a mistrial. The prosecutor himself said "Sometimes it's very frustrating in cases for everyone involved to see lengthy delays."
In 2017, Carmichael was named one of three finalists for a seat on the Indiana Supreme Court — which she called her "dream job." Governor Eric Holcomb chose Judge Christopher Goff instead. Carmichael, the only Democrat among the finalists, was passed over. The appointment made the Supreme Court entirely composed of Republican-appointed justices.
This was not her first attempt — she had applied for the Supreme Court before and been rejected. Now, having been passed over for the state's highest court, she's set her sights on Jeffersonville's mayor office instead.
After retiring from the bench in December 2024, Carmichael immediately began working part-time in the Clark County Public Defender's office — the same county where she presided as judge for 25 years. She's now defending people in the same courthouse system where she sentenced defendants. Meanwhile, she's also serving as a "senior judge" in neighboring Floyd and Scott counties.
Critics question whether a former presiding judge can truly serve as an impartial public defender in the same jurisdiction where she held power over defendants, attorneys, and cases for a quarter century — while simultaneously running for mayor.
While serving as a sitting judge — a position that demands impartiality — Carmichael made political campaign contributions, including $400 to Democrat Shelli Yoder's congressional campaign in 2012. Judicial ethics codes generally discourage or prohibit judges from making political contributions to maintain the appearance of impartiality.
Carmichael's retirement was covered by AbusiveDiscretion.com, a judicial watchdog website that tracks judicial conduct and accountability issues across the country. The site's coverage of her retirement noted her plans to run for mayor, suggesting continued interest in her judicial record from accountability advocates.
Richard Hooten — a registered sex offender with six prior felony convictions including rape, sodomy, and aggravated assault across three states — raped and murdered 17-year-old Tara Rose Willenborg in her Clarksville apartment in March 2013. He had an outstanding warrant for failing to register as a sex offender that went unserved for six months. A Louisville Public Media investigation found "Indiana's legal system gave Richard Hooten many chances — then a teenager died."
Carmichael presided over the case. While she gave Hooten life without parole plus 70 years, the deeper question is about the systemic failures in the Clark County justice system she oversaw as presiding judge — failures that allowed a serial predator with active warrants to live next door to a teenager.
Under Carmichael's tenure as presiding judge, Clark County courts were described as "historically overburdened." The county operated with fewer judges than the Indiana Supreme Court recommended based on caseload. The jail hit near-capacity at 700 inmates. It took until 2020 — after years of Carmichael's leadership — for the state legislature to finally create two additional courts to address the backlog.
This chronic understaffing contributed to the kinds of delays seen in cases like the Oberhansley murder trial. Carmichael herself lobbied for more resources, but critics question whether 25 years of presiding judge leadership should have produced better results sooner.
Court records from Trellis.Law show Carmichael presided over multiple "Red Flag" gun seizure cases in the final months of her tenure (September-December 2024). While these cases are authorized under Indiana law, they involve judges ordering firearms seized from individuals deemed dangerous — a power that raises Second Amendment concerns among many Jeffersonville voters. As mayor, would she bring the same approach to public safety?
After Carmichael's retirement in December 2024, her Circuit Court #4 seat was "won handily" by a Republican candidate in the November 2024 election. Carmichael, a Democrat, had held the seat for 25 years. She immediately announced her 2027 mayoral campaign at her retirement party.
In 2020, Carmichael sentenced Leevi Emery to the absolute maximum 30 years for voluntary manslaughter in the death of 29-year-old Stevie Cornett. Emery's 27-page appellate brief argued Carmichael "abused her discretion" by ignoring mitigating factors — childhood abuse, untreated mental illness, and substance disorders — and by using aggravating factors related to how the victim was killed and hidden that weren't even part of the plea agreement. The appeal called for the sentence to be cut nearly in half.
In the long-running legal battle between the Town of Clarksville and Theatair X adult bookstore, the Indiana Court of Appeals found that Carmichael "erred in granting a preliminary injunction" requiring the business to close between midnight and 6 a.m. Her ruling was reversed. She also pushed for $770,000 in fines against the business during the civil action. The Indiana Supreme Court declined to hear the case further.
In 2018, Carmichael barely held onto her bench seat, winning by just 53% to 47% against Republican challenger Daniel Moore — a former Clark Circuit judge who had switched parties specifically to run against her. It was one of the closest judicial races in the entire state of Indiana that year. When your own former colleague changes parties just to try to remove you from the bench, it says something about how you're running your courtroom.
Jamey Noel, the Clark County Sheriff from 2002 to 2022, pleaded guilty to 27 felonies — theft, money laundering, official misconduct, obstruction of justice, and tax evasion — for stealing over $3.1 million in taxpayer funds. He bought cars, designer clothes, and Hooters trips with public money. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and ordered to pay $3.1 million in restitution. His wife also pleaded guilty. A county council member who had a child with the married sheriff took a plea deal too.
Carmichael served as presiding judge of Clark County for nearly the entire duration of Noel's theft spree. While she is not personally implicated, the question is unavoidable: what kind of oversight culture existed in Clark County government when the sheriff could steal millions for over a decade without anyone noticing?
After 25 years sentencing defendants from the bench, Carmichael immediately joined the Clark County Public Defender's office — defending people in the same courthouse where she held power over them. She's also serving as a "senior judge" in neighboring Floyd and Scott counties, still wielding judicial authority. And she's running for mayor. Three roles, obvious conflicts. How can you credibly defend someone in a system you controlled for a quarter century? How can you campaign for executive office while still exercising judicial power next door?
Carmichael began her undergraduate education in pre-law at Michigan State University but did not complete her degree there. She transferred and eventually finished at Indiana University Southeast, then attended law school at the University of Louisville. While there's nothing wrong with transferring, her campaign materials tend to emphasize the judicial career while glossing over the academic path.
Carmichael didn't just get passed over for the Indiana Supreme Court once. She applied multiple times across her career and was rejected every time. In 2017, she made it to the final three — and still lost. Governor Holcomb chose Judge Christopher Goff instead, making the Supreme Court entirely Republican-appointed. If Indiana's governor — who reviews judicial qualifications for a living — repeatedly decided she wasn't qualified for the state's highest court, why should Jeffersonville voters trust her to run their city?
Carmichael showed a clear pattern of imposing the harshest possible sentences. She gave Leevi Emery the maximum 30 years for voluntary manslaughter (appealed for abuse of discretion). She gave Brian Montez Williams the maximum 55 years for murder. She gave Joseph Oberhansley life without parole. While some of these cases involved horrific crimes, the pattern raises questions about whether she exercised judicial discretion or simply defaulted to the maximum every time — the approach of a politician, not a thoughtful jurist.
In the Christopher Tandy murder case (65-year sentence), Carmichael allowed a detective to testify about cell phone location data generated by Trax software — a "black-box analytical tool" whose creator inflated his credentials and which has been called a "profoundly flawed practice" with "no basis in the science of RF engineering" by experts. The State presented zero evidence of testing, peer review, error rates, or reliability — and Carmichael made no preliminary assessment of reliability before letting it in.
She also admitted a gruesome autopsy photo showing the victim's scalp peeled down over his face, skull exposed, with a wooden probe inserted through a bullet hole. The dissenting judge wrote this was "precisely the type of autopsy photograph that our Supreme Court has held inadmissible" and served "no purpose other than to inflame the jury."
On top of that, the deputy prosecutor contacted a defense witness and told him Tandy's lawyer believed the witness was the real killer — discouraging him from cooperating with the defense. While the majority affirmed 2-1, the dissenting judge wrote she would "reverse Tandy's convictions and remand for a new trial" and warned that "repeatedly finding errors to be harmless risks eroding the due process right to a fair trial."
Before winning the Jeffersonville City Court seat in 1999, Carmichael ran unsuccessfully for the same position and lost. Louisville Public Media confirmed she "ran unsuccessfully for judge of the now-abolished Jeffersonville City Court before winning that seat in 1999." Even at the lowest level of the judiciary, voters initially rejected her. The city court itself was later abolished entirely.
The second Carmichael announced she wouldn't seek re-election in 2024, voters replaced her with a Republican — and it wasn't close. After 25 years of a Democrat holding the seat, the Republican candidate won handily. The message from Clark County voters was clear: they were ready for a change from Carmichael's approach the moment they had the option.
In Montgomery v. Montgomery (2016), Carmichael modified custody and took a young girl away from her father — who had sole legal and physical custody — and gave her to the mother. The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed and remanded, finding Carmichael's custody modification was not supported by the evidence. She also ordered the father to pay $7,500 toward the mother's attorney fees. A father lost custody of his daughter because of Carmichael's decision — and the appeals court said she got it wrong.
In State v. Downey (2014), Carmichael set aside a transfer order that had been issued by a different court of equal jurisdiction — the Division Three Superior Court. The Indiana Court of Appeals ruled she "abused her discretion" and reversed her decision. She overstepped her authority by interfering with another judge's order in a case involving seized cash from a drug arrest.
In City of New Albany v. Board of Commissioners of Floyd County (2019), Carmichael served as Special Judge and ruled that Floyd County was entitled to take title of a Criminal Justice Center building. The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed and remanded, finding the Building Authority lacked statutory authority to agree to the provision Carmichael had enforced. She applied the law incorrectly.
Carmichael's retirement was covered by AbusiveDiscretion.com, a national judicial watchdog website that tracks judicial misconduct and accountability issues. The site's focus is on judges with records of problematic conduct. Being featured on a site that monitors judicial abuse is not a credential most mayoral candidates would highlight.
This isn't personal — it's about what Jeffersonville needs and whether this candidate is the right fit.
A 25-year judicial career should be a candidate's strongest asset — unless there are reasons it isn't. We believe voters have the right to a thorough, honest review of how Carmichael wielded her authority as a judge before granting her new authority as mayor.
Our city faces real challenges: infrastructure, affordability, growth management, and public safety. We need a mayor with a clear, forward-looking vision — not someone transitioning from a completely different role in government.
Many Clark County residents interacted with Judge Carmichael's courtroom over the past 25 years. Their experiences — as litigants, witnesses, family members, and attorneys — are relevant to evaluating her candidacy. Those voices deserve to be heard.
Moving from an appointed or elected judicial seat to an executive office raises questions about political networks, relationships with local power structures, and potential conflicts of interest. Voters deserve transparency on all of it.
Have specific policy concerns or documented issues? We want to hear from you.
Share Your PerspectiveDo your own research. Here are publicly available sources related to Vicki Carmichael's career and campaign.
Official Ballotpedia page with biographical information, election history, and public record.
Visit Ballotpedia →Louisville Public Media coverage of her retirement from the Clark County Circuit Court bench.
Read Article →WLKY reporting on Carmichael's transition from the bench to the campaign trail.
Read Article →Search public court records from Indiana courts, including Clark County Circuit Court #4.
Search Records →Official site for the Indiana courts system, including judicial conduct information.
Visit Site →Official city website — see what your local government is working on and what the next mayor will inherit.
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