FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — Pike County Circuit Court Judge Howard Keith Hall was indicted by a grand jury after he allegedly submitted false payroll certifications from October 2010 through May 15, 2020 when he was the elected county attorney.
A document filed in the Eastern District of Kentucky alleges that Hall was submitting the false payroll every pay period, which claimed the assistant county attorney of Pike County was a part-time employee who worked at least 100 hours per month.
As a result, the document read that the assistant county attorney received $290,140 in gross pay between October 2010 and May 31, 2020, despite allegedly not working more than 100 hours a month.
Further, the document claimed that the assistant attorney received employer contributions to Medicare, Social Security, retirement benefits, and health insurance, marking a total of around $440,587 in pay and benefits.
According to the document, Hall claimed to practice at the assistant county attorney's law firm between October 2011 and October 2020, in which Hall allegedly received various payments, totaling $505,900.
Hall intended "to defraud, and obtain money by materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises" in Franklin County and Pike County, the document read.
Due to the indictment, the document reported that Hall must forfeit all property, in connection to the violations.
An additional document filed on April 18 reported that Hall was temporarily suspended "from the performance of judicial duties" following his felony indictment.
